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Florida Officials Announce Appeal To Judge's Gay Marriage Ruling

Gay marriage rulings
MGN Online

Florida officials have announced plans to file an appeal to a federal judge’s ruling finding Florida’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional.

Department of Health head John Armstrong, Secretary of Management Services Craig Nichols, and Washington County Clerk of Court Harold Bazzell made the appeal through Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office Thursday.

Voters put the ban in place in 2008, but U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle declared it violates guarantees of equal protection and due process under the 14th Amendment. The ruling and its effects are currently being delayed, as appeals against it are sorted out.

The state’s 2nd District Court of Appeal has asked Florida’s Supreme Court to decide whether the ban on gay marriage is constitutional.