Judge orders Kansas to let gay couples marry

Judge Crabtree granted a brief stay to allow the state to appeal.

Kansas City, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has ordered Kansas to allow same-sex couples to marry, but he delayed enforcement of the order until next week to give the state time to appeal.

U.S. District Judge Daniel Crabtree issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday barring the state from enforcing its constitutional ban starting at 5 p.m. on Nov. 11, pending the outcome of a lawsuit challenging it.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued to overturn Kansas' ban after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear appeals from five states seeking to save their gay marriage bans. Among them were Oklahoma and Utah, which are in the same appeals court circuit as Kansas.

The ACLU says denying the couples it is representing the right to marry, even for a short period, would do them irreparable harm.

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The Gayly – November 4, 2014 @ 3:20pm