The First Circuit US. Court of Appeals has ruled that the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconsitutional in one of the most closely watched gay-marriage cases in the nation.
The ruling had been delayed in part when the Obama administration reversed itself in the case last year. After first defending DOMA, the Justice Department then filed a revised brief dropping its defense.
The court decision Thursday in Boston found that the federal law forces states to discriminate against same-sex couples by not allowing them to grant federal benefits to gay spouses, even though they may be legally married under the states’ laws.
“[M]any Americans believe that marriage is the union of a man and a woman, and most Americans live in states where that is the law today. One virtue of federalism is that it permits this diversity of governance based on local choice, but this applies as well to the states that have chosen to legalize same-sex marriage,” the court wrote in its opinion. ”Under current Supreme Court authority, Congress’ denial of federal benefits to same-sex couples lawfully married in Massachusetts has not been adequately supported by any permissible federal interest.”
The court stayed its decision ”[a]nticipating that certiorari will be sought and that Supreme Court review of DOMA is highly likely.”
