A Colorado judge has struck down a 2006 state-approved ban on same-sex marriage, known as Amendment 43, as unconstitutional. The amendment originally passed with 56 percent of the vote, but District Court Judge C. Scott Crabtree of Adams County ruled on Wednesday, July 9 that such bans “violate plaintiffs’ due process and equal protection guarantees under the 14th Amendment.”
Nine same-sex couples filed suit against Amendment 43 in November 2006 legally challenging the state-approved bans as unconstitutional. Over a dozen similar cases around the country have attempted to challenge the constitutionality of the bans. Christian Post says in recent months, every decision regarding these lawsuits has come down against the amendments.
Family Research Council President Tony Perkins issued a statement denouncing Crabtree’s reasoning. “Rather than take his cues from the Constitution, he joined the judicial stampede by lower federal courts to override state marriage laws—something the Supreme Court was careful not to do in last year’s Windsor decision,” said Perkins. “Judges can ignore the will of the people and they defy natural law in making same-sex marriage legal, but the will never be able to make it right.”
The Colorado Attorney General’s office intends to appeal Crabtree’s decision.
