Same-Sex Marriage Ruling: Amendment ruled unconstitutional

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Same-Sex Marriage Ruling
Amendment ruled unconstitutional


A federal judge has declared Nebraska's one-of-a-kind ban on same-sex marriages unconstitutional.

Nebraska voters approved a constitutional amendment, known as Initiative 416, in 2000 with 70 percent of the vote. It prevents homosexuals who work for the state or the University of Nebraska system from sharing health insurance and other benefits with their partners.

In a 42-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Joseph Joseph Bataillon said Thursday that the ban "imposes significant burdens on both the expressive and intimate associational rights" of gays and lesbians "and creates a significant barrier to the plaintiffs' right to petition or to participate in the political process."

"Although not central to disposition of this case, the court finds" the ban "burdens rights of intimate association," he said.



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