A whole lot of judges who are being asked to decide whether states may ban same-sex couples from marrying think the Supreme Court clearly gave them the answer last year: no. But a few judges think the Supreme Court provided the answer more than 40 years ago: yes.
That reading comes from a one-sentence order the court issued in a 1972 case, Baker v. Nelson, which said there was no “substantial federal question” in a state’s decision to ban same-sex marriages.
The dismissal of that long-ago case might be the reason that same-sex marriage supporters see their winning streak in federal courts come to an end. And it could give lower court judges, who know the ultimate answer on same-sex marriage will come from the Supreme Court, a way to uphold voter-approved state bans without deciding the thorny constitutional questions that accompany the issue.
Authored By Robert Barnes – See the Full Story at The Washington Post
