South Carolina’s ban on gay marriage was ruled unconstitutional Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel, effectively allowing gay marriages in the state after noon on Nov. 20.
Gergel issued a stay on his decision through Nov. 20 to give time for an appeal from State Attorney General Alan Wilson, who announced hours after the ruling that he plans to do so.
The ruling came on the case Condon v. Haley, in which same-sex couple Colleen Condon and Ann Bleckley filed suit against South Carolina in October when they were not issued a marriage license after they applied and paid the filing fee. Gergel ordered Charleston County Probate Judge Irvin Condon (distantly related to Colleen Condon) to grant a marriage license to the couple after the Nov. 20 stay expires.
Gergel’s ruling said the ban was unconstitutional based on the 14th Amendment’s due process and equal protection clauses.
Gergel’s ruling prohibits enforcing laws or policies that “seek to prohibit the marriage of same sex couples,” interference with Condon and Bleckley’s receipt of a marriage license or the right to marry and refusal to issue the couple a marriage license.
“While this is a victory for the community, it’s important to realize that marriage equality is not the most pressing issue facing our community,” USC BGLSA President Devon Sherrell said in an email Wednesday. “So while we will be celebrating this victory, we are looking ahead to the future of the cause with optimism and preparedness.”
Two other cases regarding same-sex marriage were brought to the U.S. District Court last week, both regarding changing names on S.C. drivers’ licenses for same-sex couples in the same way heterosexual couples do.