BREAKING: Federal Judge Strikes Down Kentucky's Same-Sex Marriage Ban, Ruling Has Been Stayed Pending Appeal

Via Freedom To Marry:

Today, July 1, 2014, U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II ruled in favor of the freedom to marry, striking down a constitutional amendment in the state that restricts marriage to different-sex couples. Previously, Judge Heyburn struck down the portion of the marriage ban in Kentucky that denies respect to same-sex couples who legally married in other states. Shortly after that ruling (in Love v. Beshear) in February 2014, two unmarried couples intervened in the case, which was retitled Love v. Beshear.

UPDATE: Read the full ruling.

UPDATE II: From the Courier-Journal.

"In America, even sincere and long-hold religious beliefs do not trump the constitutional rights of those who happen to have been out-voted," U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II wrote to invalidate Kentucky's constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. Heyburn in February had ruled that Kentucky must recognize gay marriages performed in other states. Heyburn upheld the right to marry today, but put his ruling on hold pending a decision by a higher court. Heyburn rejected the only justification offered by lawyers for Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear — that traditional marriages contribute to a stable birth rate and the state's long-term economic stability. "These arguments are not those of serious people," he said. Heyburn held that the ban on gay marriage within Kentucky violates the constitutional guarantee of equal protection under the law and that there is "no conceivable legitimate purpose for it."

More about the case:

The case was brought by Timothy Love and Lawrence Ysunza, who lived together for 34 years and were denied a marriage license on Feb. 13 by the Jefferson County Clerk's office; and Maurice Blanchard and Dominque James, who have lived together 10 years and were cited for trespassing when they refused to leave the clerk's office after being denied a license on Jan. 23, 2013. A jury later convicted them of trespassing but fined them a penny. Heyburn noted that Love's emergency heart surgery had to be delayed last summer to prepare documents allowing Ysunza access and decision-making authority for Love. Blanchard and James alleged that their inability to obtain parental rights as a married couple has deterred them from adopting children.