WYOMING: Laramie City Council Approves Sweeping LGBT Rights Ordinance

Via the Associated Press:

The Laramie City Council on Wednesday approved a local anti-discrimination ordinance in the college town where Matthew Shepard's death triggered nationwide sympathy and brought a re-examination of attitudes toward gays 17 years ago. The council voted 7-2 in favor of the measure that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing, employment and access to public facilities such as restaurants.

Local organizers focused their efforts on Laramie after the Legislature repeatedly rejected anti-discrimination bills, most recently early this year. The Laramie Nondiscrimination Task Force presented a draft ordinance to the City Council last summer. Jeran Artery, head of the group Wyoming Equality which has lobbied for the anti-discrimination measures at the state Legislature, said he was thrilled with the council vote.

Judy Shepard, Matt Shepard's mother, is active in a Denver-based foundation that bears her son's name and focuses on equality issues. "I'm thrilled that Laramie's doing it, at the same time sort of saddened that the state of Wyoming can't see fit to do that as well," Shepard told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Wednesday before the council vote from Washington, D.C. "Maybe the rest of Wyoming will understand this is about fellow human beings and not something that's other than what they are."

WYOMING: House Kills LGBT Rights Bill

Via the Associated Press:

The Wyoming House of Representatives has voted down a bill that would have prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The House voted 33-to-26 against the bill, which already had cleared the Wyoming Senate. Supporters have included Wyoming business groups, which have said enacting an anti-discrimination law would help the state recruit new corporations and help existing businesses attract good employees. Opponents included several church groups, including the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne. They maintained that the bill would crimp the right of people to make decisions about hiring and also infringe on freedom of speech. Rep. Mark Jennings, R-Sheridan, said the bill was being promoted as a way to improve Wyoming’s image. However, he said the state should have no concerns along those lines. "This bill is not needed, it aims to fix problems that don’t exist,” Jennings said. “I ask you to defeat this bill.” Rep. Nathan Winters, R-Thermopolis, said the problem with the anti-discrimination bill is that it removes all discretion from individuals as to how they choose to exercise their freedom of conscience. “And it enshrines forever in law, something that is detrimental to the First Amendment,” he said.

And anti-LGBT discrimination remains perfectly legal in 29 states.

WYOMING: GOP Rep Ejected From Room During Successful LGBT Rights Vote

Yesterday a Wyoming House committee approved an LGBT anti-discrimination bill but only after ejecting a ranting GOP rep from the chamber.

Senate File 115 would add “sexual orientation or gender identity” to existing laws that protect people from discrimination based on race, religion, age and other protected classes. The bill had previously passed the Senate and now moves to the House floor for debate. Rep. Harlan Edmonds, R-Cheyenne, was kicked out of the House Labor, Health and Social Services meeting Friday, after proposing an amendment to the bill that would make it effective when “hell freezes over,” instead of the date of July 1. Committee Chairwoman Rep. Elaine Harvey, R-Lovell, had started the Friday afternoon meeting insisting people would remain civil. She told Edmonds to leave after his comment, which followed a more than two-hour discussion in which he also asked the bill’s supporters why pedophilia wasn’t in the bill. “We said civility would prevail,” Harvey said. Senate File 115 passed with six representatives in favor and two in opposition.

Note that the ejection was ordered by the Republican chair of the committee. Edmonds tried to vote before leaving the room but the committee chair told him that his vote would not count. Among those testifying in opposition to the bill were the Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne and Wyoming Pastors Network.

Sullivan Backs Matthew Shepard Truthers

"The question here is whether the crime was solely a function of the homophobic hatred of two strangers who beat up and brutally murdered someone merely because he was gay. That’s the official line of the Matthew Shepard Foundation and the Human Rights Campaign. Of course these motives could also have been involved. I’m arguing that meth can explain all of it, but may not be the only factor involved. I can’t read the meth-addled minds of the foul murderers. I can detect bullshit from the gay rights establishment. No one wants to confess a meth robbery gone haywire, and they may have thought the gay panic defense might work – and it didn’t. The Matthew Shepard Foundation and the Human Rights Campaign should not be smearing and demonizing good faith work by a courageous openly gay journalist. They need to apologize, and correct the record. At some point, their convenient untruth must stop." - Andrew Sullivan, responding to the uproar that followed after the Guardian this week published an essay in praise of the widely-debunked book which claims that Shepard's murder was not an anti-gay hate crime. Sullivan has long opposed hate crimes laws.

RELATED: Media Matters' Carlos Maza reports on the flap.

On October 25, The Guardian published an article by columnist Julie Bindel titled "The truth behind America's most famous gay-hate murder." The report focuses on the widely discredited 2013 book The Book of Matt, in which author Stephen Jimenez attempts to make the case that Matthew Shepard's brutal murder in 1998 was drug-related and not, as it is widely believed, motivated by anti-gay hate.

The book has been criticized for relying on shoddy sources and omitting key facts about the case, prompting the Matthew Shepard Foundation to condemn the book for being based on rumors and innuendo. Jimenez's book has been described as "fictional" by the lead detective in the case. People familiar with the murder - including one of the killer's appellate attorneys, Albany County Sheriff Dave O'Malley, and Albany County Undersheriff Robert Debree - have condemned the book as factually challenged.

But Bindel didn't include those criticisms in her piece. Instead, she portrayed Jimenez as a victim of gay activists' blind desire to hide the truth about Shepard's murder. It's unclear why Bindel failed to mention the numerous flaws with Jimenez's book. She has previously been criticized for claiming that she chose to be gay and for making inflammatory comments about the transgender community.

Excerpts from the book have been published on many anti-gay sites and hate groups leaders frequently cite it as evidence that hate crimes laws are unneeded and exist only to stifle Christianity.

WYOMING: Marriage Licensing Begins

@dancepeda: Gay couple with first marriage license in Natrona County #Wyoming talk to media. #gaymarriage pic.twitter.com/CtT2YdQ2nX
— Dan Cepeda (@dancepeda) October 21, 2014

Wyoming Joins The Sapphire States

Same-sex marriage just became legal in Wyoming after the state attorney general filed his notice of non-appeal. Weddings will commence immediately in state #32! Map legend.

WYOMING: AG To File Non-Appeal Notice Tomorrow, Marriages Could Start At Once

Wyoming has no waiting period to marry, so with tomorrow morning's filing it's possible that weddings could commence immediately.

UPDATE: Marriages will begin at 10AM per the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Today, the State of Wyoming announced that it will file a notice stating that it will not appeal a U.S. District Court ruling that found the state’s ban on marriage equality is unconstitutional. As a result, same-sex couples can begin marrying at 10 am MT tomorrow.

On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl of the District of Wyoming granted an order sought by four same-sex couples and Wyoming Equality that the state immediately lift its marriage equality ban and begin allowing same-sex couples to marry. Citing two decisions of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit striking down Utah’s and Oklahoma’s bans on marriage for same-sex couples, Judge Skavdahl ruled that Wyoming’s refusal to permit same-sex couples to marry violates the U.S Constitution.

Judge Skavdahl ordered the state to begin issuing marriage licenses, but placed that order temporarily on hold to permit Wyoming state officials to respond. Today, the state officials announced that they will file a notice at 10 am MT tomorrow, stating that they will not appeal the ruling and allowing marriages to begin.

WYOMING: Could Today Be The Day?

Late Friday night Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead declared that he will not appeal the marriage equality ruling issued that morning by a federal court. According to Mead, he will send formal notice "no later than Thursday, October 23, 2014, at 5:00 p.m." - which is when that court's stay expires. Local activists have demanded that the notice be filed immediately. Wyoming has no waiting period to marry.

Matt Baume: Marriage News Watch

Clip recap: "We just picked up more states with the freedom to marry, and the number could continue increasing over the course of this week. But in several states, officials are blocking the start of marriage despite courts ruling against their bans. We'll have the details on how couples are fighting back. Plus, more bad news for the National Organization for Marriage. This time it's a ruling in Virginia that means they'll lose out on over half a million dollars."

WYOMING: Governor Will Not Appeal, Marriages To Commence By Friday

"This result is contrary to my personal beliefs and those of many others. As in all matters, I respect the role of the courts and the ruling of the Court. While this is not the result I and others would have hoped, I recognize people have different points of view and I hope all citizens agree, we are bound by the law." - Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead, in a statement announcing that he will not appeal today's ruling. That notice will be delivered to the court "no later than Thursday, October 23, 2014, at 5:00 p.m." - which is when the stay expires. Wyoming has no waiting period to marry. Done and done.

Wyoming And Florida: Cerulean Sisters

Cerulean is gayer than cyan. Because Miranda Priestly.

BREAKING: Federal Judge Strikes Down Wyoming Same-Sex Marriage Ban

Can you STAND IT? I guess he didn't feel like waiting until Monday. Equality Case Files has the ruling, so dig in.

UPDATE: From the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Today, U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl of the District of Wyoming ruled in favor of the freedom to marry in the challenge to the State of Wyoming’s ban on marriage equality. The court’s order granted a request by four same-sex couples and Wyoming Equality, who had filed a federal lawsuit challenging Wyoming’s marriage ban, for an order requiring the state to allow couples to begin marrying immediately.

Citing two decisions of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit striking down Utah’s and Oklahoma’s bans on marriage for same-sex couples, Judge Skavdahl ruled that Wyoming’s refusal to permit same-sex couples to marry is unconstitutional. Judge Skavdahl ordered the state to begin issuing marriage licenses, but placed that order temporarily on hold to permit Wyoming state officials to appeal his ruling. Marriages will begin in Wyoming at 5:00 pm on Thursday, October 23, or as soon as the state officials defending the challenge inform the court that they do not intend to appeal, whichever is sooner.

The four couples and Wyoming Equality are represented by Cheyenne attorney Tracy Zubrod, the law firm of Arnold & Porter LLP, the law firm of Rathod Mohamedbahi LLC, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR).

WYOMING: GOP Gov. Matt Mead Says State Should Not Appeal Marriage Ruling

Via the Casper Star-Tribune:

Republican Gov. Matt Mead said the state shouldn't appeal the same-sex marriage ruling due from U.S. District Judge Scott W. Skavdahl. Mead spoke on the issue Thursday night during a Wyoming PBS debate in Riverton. Mead is seeking re-election Nov. 4. "The answer is no, we shouldn't appeal the ruling," he said. Skavdah, based in the federal court in Casper, will order on the question of whether Wyoming's same sex marriage law violates the U.S. Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment by 5 p.m. Monday, he said during a Thursday morning hearing in his court.

OK, fabulous! But here's something really interesting that I've just noticed. The attorney general of Wyoming is appointed by the governor. Except in the case of current Attorney General Peter K. Micheal, who was appointed mid-term in 2013 by his predecessor, Gregory A. Phillips, who was leaving to take another job. And what job does Phillips hold today? Why, he's an Obama-nominated judge with the Tenth Circuit Court. Yeah, I'm guessing we definitely get an updated map on Monday night.

WYOMING: Federal Judge To Issue Same-Sex Marriage Ruling By Monday

Via the Casper Star-Tribune:

U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl plans to issue an order by Monday in a case that could legalize same-sex marriage in Wyoming. Skavdahl heard arguments from attorneys representing gay marriage advocates and the state during a Thursday morning hearing in Casper. He also listened to testimony from Laramie County Clerk Debra Lathrop, who is one of the defendants in the case. The judge said he would consider the arguments and examine a few more issues before issuing his ruling by 5 p.m. Monday. Gay marriage supporters say Wyoming should legalize same-sex marriage in light of an Oct. 6 U.S. Supreme Court decision.

This case was brought by the National Center For Lesbian Rights.

WYOMING: Court Sets October 16th Date For Hearing On Marriage Equality Case

Via press release from the National Center for Lesbian Rights:

On October 16th, U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl of the District of Wyoming will hold a hearing in a federal court challenge to the State of Wyoming’s refusal to permit same-sex couples to marry and to respect the legal marriages of same-sex couples who married in other states.

At the hearing, the court will consider a request by four same-sex couples and Wyoming Equality, who are the plaintiffs in the case, for an immediate order directing state officials to comply with two decisions of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit establishing that a state’s refusal to allow same-sex couples to marry violates the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of due process and equal protection. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let those appeals court decisions stand, meaning that all states within the Tenth Circuit, including Wyoming, must comply with those decisions.

Each of the couples wishes to be married in Wyoming or to have their existing marriage respected by the State of Wyoming. The October 16th hearing will consider the couples’ request for an order requiring the state to immediately permit Wyoming same-sex couples to marry and to treat their marriages the same as all other marriages. The requested order would remain in place while the plaintiffs’ federal case proceeds. The court may rule on the plaintiffs’ request at the hearing, or may issue a ruling at a later date.

The hearing will take place at 10AM Mountain Time.

WYOMING: NCLR Files For Immediate Compliance With SCOTUS Decision

Via press release:

Today, four same-sex couples and Wyoming Equality filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the State of Wyoming’s refusal to permit same-sex couples to marry and to respect the legal marriages of same-sex couples who married in other states. The couples will ask the court for an immediate order directing state officials to comply with a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in June establishing that a state’s refusal to allow same-sex couples to marry violates the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let that appeals court decision stand, meaning that all states within the Tenth Circuit, including Wyoming, must comply with the decision.

The couples are Anne Guzzo and Bonnie Robinson of Laramie, Carl Oleson and Rob Johnston of Casper, Ivan Williams and Chuck Killion of Cheyenne, and who previously filed a state-court lawsuit challenging Wyoming’s marriage ban. Also joining the lawsuit are Brie Barth and Shelly Montgomery of Carpenter, who attempted to obtain a marriage license in Wyoming after the Supreme Court decision but were refused. Wyoming Equality is the state’s largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Wyoming’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Its members include same-sex couples throughout the state.

Zoomity zoom!

HRC Head Calls For Immediate "Remedial Action" In Those Other Six States

Supercell Time-Lapse

3.4M views in two days.

Matt Baume: Marriage News Watch

Clip recap:

A Republican icon comes out in support of marriage equality. We've had a sting of major marriage wins in the last few months, but now anti-gay groups will keep trying to tear those victories down in a series of hearings. Support for marriage equality is picking up in conservative states, a terminally ill woman in Indiana is one step closer to getting her marriage recognized, and we have more lawsuits on the horizon in the south.

Former Sen. Alan Simpson For Marriage

Via press release from Freedom To Marry:

As federal appeals courts begin to hear marriage cases across the country, Freedom to Marry released a national television ad featuring former U.S. Senator Alan Simpson. Simpson, a Republican, represented Wyoming for 18 years and held senior leadership positions. In the 30-second ad, the senator makes the conservative case for the freedom to marry based on individual liberty and a live-and-let-live philosophy. The ad begins airing on April 8 on national cable and network Sunday political shows in Washington, D.C., and in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Wyoming markets.

“Speaking as a conservative, a lifelong Republican, and a son of the West, Senator Simpson talks of his values of freedom and limited government and the joy of marriage,” said Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry. “The ad shows the bipartisan momentum for the freedom to marry. And recent rulings against marriage discrimination by nine out of nine federal district judges show the legal trajectory of our campaign: toward more freedom, more dignity, and more families enjoying equality under the law."