Chief Justice John Roberts has asked same-sex marriage proponents to respond to an emergency request from Virginia to halt a circuit court ruling letting gay couples marry in the state.
Roberts, who handles such requests for the region, gave a deadline of Monday at 5 p.m. for the response, according to SCOTUSblog.
The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a request to halt its ruling. If a “stay” is not granted by the Supreme Court, same-sex marriages will be allowed to move forward as of next Thursday in Virginia.
Granting a stay is largely a procedural matter. The Supreme Court is expected to have the final word on the larger question of whether same-sex marriage is a constitutional right.
