By Ashley Alman
A federal judge ruled Virginia’s ban on gay marriage unconstitutional late Thursday.
U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen wrote that the constitutional right to equality should apply to all, including same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses.
“Our Constitution declares that ‘all men’ are created equal. Surely this means all of us,” wrote Allen, an Eastern District of Virginia judge in Norfolk.. “While ever vigilant for the wisdom that can come from the voices of our voting public, our courts have never long tolerated the perpetuation of laws rooted in unlawful prejudice. One of the judiciary’s noblest endeavors is to scrutinize law that emerge from such roots.”
Mark Herring, Virginia’s Democratic attorney general, recently announced his support for gay couples seeking marriage licenses.
“After thorough legal review, I have now concluded that Virginia’s ban on marriage between same sex couples violates the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution on two grounds: marriage is a fundamental right being denied to some Virginians, and the ban unlawfully discriminates on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender,” Herring said in January.
