Licenses issued in some Kansas counties

Kansas City, Mo. (AP) — A U.S. Supreme Court ruling prompted gay couples across Kansas to trickle into county offices to pick up marriage applications Thursday and, while most were uncertain whether they would be allowed to wed, some judges have waived a mandatory waiting period.

Judges in at least four Kansas counties were issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples a day after the high court's ruling allowing them to wed. Clerks in other counties were giving applications to gay couples but requiring them to abide by the state's three-day waiting period before they can get a license.

As of midmorning Thursday, Douglas County District Judge Robert Fairchild had waived the waiting period for three couples and said he would consider similar requests on a case-by-case basis. A different judge had agreed to preside over the wedding of one of the couples after the courthouse closes at 5 p.m. CST.

Two couples received licenses in Sedgwick County, while judges in Cowley and Riley counties each had issued one marriage license to same-sex couples.

The Supreme Court denied a request Wednesday from the state to block gay and lesbian couples from getting married in Kansas while the state fights lawsuits challenging Kansas' gay-marriage ban. Attorney General Derek Schmidt said the high court's decision applies only in the two counties where the court clerks are defendants, but the American Civil Liberties Union says it applies in all of Kansas' 105 counties.

by Bill Draper, Associated Press

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The Gayly – November 13, 2014 @ 12:10pm