For newlyweds, possible stay of Indiana same-sex marriage ruling clouds horizon

A federal judge struck down Indiana's ban on same-sex marriages Wednesday, leaving state officials, lawmakers, social conservatives, gay rights supporters and legal experts scrambling to sort out exactly what the decision means — and what will happen next.

But for the hundreds of gay and lesbian couples who rushed to courthouses across the state for impromptu weddings, the judge's words meant something simple, yet significant: They could finally be married in Indiana.

The monumental ruling by U.S. District Judge Richard Young said Indiana's law that limits marriage to one man and one woman, and that denies recognition of same-sex marriages legally performed in other states, is unconstitutional. It mirrored more than a dozen recent federal court opinions that have struck down same-sex marriage bans in other states.

"In less than a year," Young wrote in his opinion, "every federal district court to consider the issue has reached the same conclusion in thoughtful and thorough opinions — laws prohibiting the celebration and recognition of same-sex marriages are unconstitutional."

Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller's staff quickly filed a notice of appeal and an emergency request for a stay of Young's order, which could halt same-sex marriages pending outcome of an appeal. The motion for a stay, according to spokesman Bryan Corbin, which has been granted in other jurisdictions, "is intended to prevent confusion and inconsistency between county clerk's offices regarding license issuance, while the appeal is pending."

"Until the United States Supreme Court determines that traditional marriage laws such as Indiana's are unconstitutional, it is premature to require Indiana to change its definition of marriage and abide by this court's conception of marriage," the attorney general wrote in the request for stay. "Nonetheless, marriages in violation of Indiana's existing law have taken place, are taking place, and will continue to take place pursuant to this court's order."

Supporters of gay rights saw the ruling as a historic victory in their long struggle for equality in Indiana.

City-County Councilman Zach Adamson, who married his longtime partner in Washington, D.C., last year, said the ruling is "absolutely a big deal."

"Now the state represents you, too, instead of segregating you out for discrimination," he said. "They have to treat me like my neighbor. It's long overdue."

But opponents of same-sex marriage viewed the ruling as yet another attack on traditional marriage.

"It's a disappointing but not unexpected ruling," said Curt Smith, president of the Indiana Family Institute. "We are deeply disappointed at the lack of respect for Indiana statute and our legislature. ... It is very distressing to see that marriage licenses are being issued and that presumably marriages will be performed in the near future on couples that are not authorized under state law."

Just minutes after Young's ruling was released, Marion County Clerk Beth White began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and conducted what was likely the state's first such wedding — the spur-of-the-moment union of Craig Bowen and Jake Miller of Indianapolis.

The news came out around noon. There was a party atmosphere inside the clerk's office on Wednesday afternoon, where hundreds of people waited in line for a marriage license as White kept the doors open until 8 p.m. to accommodate the crush. After the office closed at 11 p.m., it had processed 250 marriage licenses and conducted more than 186 same-sex wedding ceremonies. It said marriage license services would resume at 8 a.m. Thursday, and it would continue to offer civil ceremonies.

"We're married!" Bowen and Miller shouted, raising their marriage license like a trophy. Applause filled the room.

"The good people of Indiana have waited long enough," White said of her decision to immediately issue licenses. "Right now, a door has opened. I want to get as many people in before that door closes."

Later in the day, clerks in Boone, Hamilton, Hendricks and Johnson counties also began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

The Boone and Hamilton county clerks were parties to the lawsuit and were instructed by the attorney general that they must comply with Young's order, said spokesman Corbin. He said clerks in other counties are not under the direct jurisdiction of the federal court order, but the attorney general "must encourage everyone to show respect for the judge and the orders that are issued."

It is not clear how long the current window for same-sex marriages will remain open. Legal experts said a decision on the request for a stay could come in a matter of days.

Ken Falk, legal director of the ACLU of Indiana, who brought one of the lawsuits that prompted Young's ruling, said his organization will "vigorously oppose" a stay in the case, though he acknowledged Zoeller's office has a right to seek one.

"I think the state of Indiana is swimming against the tide of history," Falk said.

If Zoeller's office is successful in winning a stay of Young's decision, clerk's offices across Indiana will no longer be able to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But Falk said it was unclear whether licenses already issued would still be valid.

"What they have is a marriage, but it's not yet clear how Indiana would treat that," Falk said. "U.S. Attorney General (Eric) Holder did indicate in other situations that the United States would recognize those marriages for things like taxes and what have you. We'll have to see what happens."

Hundreds of marriages performed in Utah, Michigan and Wisconsin, where couples also rushed to the altar after federal courts struck down laws similar to Indiana's same-sex marriage ban, have been thrown into legal limbo after stays were ordered while those rulings are being appealed.

Steve Sanders, a law professor at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law in Bloomington, called the situation "uncharted territory" and said he would advise same-sex couples against rushing to marry.

"I can sympathize, and I certainly understand the impulse, but I personally think it's a mistake," he said. "It is potentially dangerous for them and for the law."

Sanders said gay couples who married, expecting to enjoy all the rights and privileges afforded to married male-female couples, could find themselves having to return to court to sort out their rights and status.

Gov. Mike Pence, a steadfast advocate of one-man, one-woman marriage, supports the attorney general's appeal and "Indiana's right to define the institution of marriage for the residents of our state," spokeswoman Kara Brooks said in a statement. The state will comply with the federal court's order as this case moves through the appeals process, she added.

Young's decision in the Indiana case is "very similar to what we're seeing in all the district courts" that have taken up challenges to same-sex marriage bans, said Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond School of Law professor who has been closely monitoring court cases across the U.S. involving the issue.

The judge's order says: "It is clear that the fundamental right to marry shall not be deprived to some individuals based solely on the person they choose to love."

DOCUMENTS: Fed. court tosses Ind. same-sex marriage ban

"In fact," Young wrote, "the history of our Constitution ... is the story of the extension of constitutional rights and protections to people once ignored or excluded."

The ruling came on the same day a federal appeals court upheld a Utah district court ruling that found that state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. It is the first appellate ruling in the contentious national debate that experts expect eventually will land in the lap of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Young's decision came in the case Baskin, et al. v. Bogan, et al., in which several same-sex Indiana couples sued the state in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. It was one of five federal lawsuits filed this year challenging the Indiana law but became a catalyst for many of the legal decisions Young has made over the past few months chipping away at the state's same-sex marriage ban.

Amy Sandler and Niki Quasney, a Munster couple named as plaintiffs in the case brought by Lambda Legal, a firm that advocates for LGBT rights, asked Young for immediate recognition of their marriage because Quasney is terminally ill.

On May 8, Young ordered Indiana to recognize the couple's marriage indefinitely, a decision the state then asked a federal appeals court to overturn. That order, legal experts said, hinted at how the judge might rule on the broader constitutionality of the state law that says marriage is only between a man and a woman.

"Honestly, it's amazing to me that people are able to get married in Indiana today," Sandler told The Indianapolis Star by phone Wednesday. "That is really special. That was really important to Niki and I."

Sandler and Quasney married in Massachusetts last year after a U.S. Supreme Court decision gave full federal recognition to legally married gay couples. Sandler said she felt that decision signaled a shift in national perception of same-sex marriage — but she was still uncertain about whether she could get that recognition from Indiana.

"To know that people are lining up for the freedoms that they deserve means so much to Niki and I," Sandler said. "This was what we wanted. We wanted this for everyone."

Information on the wedding license process is available at www.indy.gov/clerk.

Star reporters Brian Eason, Kristine Guerra, Vic Ryckaert, Cara Anthony, Tony Cook and Barb Berggoetz contributed to this story. Call Star reporter Tim Evans at (317) 444-6204. Follow him on Twitter: @starwatchtim.