Same-sex marriage in West Virginia

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Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in West Virginia since October 9, 2014. On July 28, 2014, a ruling by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Bostic v. Schaefer found Virginia's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. On October 6, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in Bostic, allowing the ruling to take effect. As a result, on October 9, 2014, Governor Earl Ray Tomblin announced he was ordering state agencies to act in compliance with the controlling precedent in the Virginia case. Even though West Virginia's ban had not been explicitly declared unconstitutional, the Fourth Circuit precedent made it certain the state's statutory ban would be overturned. The state started issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples that same day. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia officially ruled the state's same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional on November 7, 2014.

Contents

Background

State statutes define marriage as between "a man and a woman". In 2009, a bill that would have amended the State Constitution to ban same-sex marriage was voted down 67–30 by the House of Delegates. All 29 House Republicans voted to move the measure out of committee, along with one Democrat. The amendment was heavily supported by Evangelical groups in the state and the Family Council Policy of West Virginia. [1] In 2010, The Marriage Protection Amendment was re-introduced in both the House of Delegates and the Senate. Republican efforts to discharge the measure from the House Constitutional Revision Committee were defeated by 68 votes to 30. The amendment was later defeated in the Senate.

In December 2011, Delegate John Doyle introduced a bill to legalize civil unions in West Virginia as one of his last acts before retirement in 2012. [2] [3] It was submitted to the House of Delegates in February 2012 but died without a vote. [4]

West Virginia's only recognition of same-sex relationships was its extension of hospital visitation rights to same-sex couples through a designated visitor statute. [5]

McGee v. Cole

On October 1, 2013, Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit, McGee v. Cole, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on behalf of three same-sex couples and one of their children, challenging the state's denial of marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The suit named two county clerks as defendants. [6] On November 21, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey asked the court to allow his office to defend the state's statutes, [7] and on December 19 both he and the clerks asked the court to dismiss part of the suit. [8] On January 30, 2014, the judge assigned to the case, U.S. District Judge Robert C. Chambers, dismissed the part of the suit challenging the state's refusal to recognize same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions, since none of the plaintiffs had married elsewhere, but he invited the plaintiffs to add plaintiffs that had done so and the plaintiffs said they were considering that. [9]

On June 10, 2014, Judge Chambers ordered a stay of proceedings until a ruling in Bostic v. Schaefer , a case in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals that challenged Virginia's denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples. The district judge reasoned that "because of the overlap in the issues present" the Virginia case should be decided first. [10] His order paralleled those in two other same-sex marriage cases in the Fourth Circuit's jurisdiction: Harris v. Rainey , another Virginia case, and Bradacs v. Haley , a South Carolina case. Following a decision in favor of same-sex marriage rights in Bostic on July 28, the parties in McGee filed competing motions with the district court on whether to allow the case to proceed. [11] Judge Chambers on September 16 extended the stay pending action by the U.S. Supreme Court. [12] He gave the defendants until October 21 to respond to a motion to rule in the plaintiffs' favor. On October 6, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal of the ruling from the Fourth Circuit, and the plaintiffs asked the court to rule for them. [13]

Attorney General Morrisey announced on October 9 that he would no longer defend the suit since the U.S. Supreme Court had declined to review Bostic, which had found Virginia's denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples unconstitutional. [14] On October 9, 2014, Governor Earl Ray Tomblin announced he was ordering state agencies to act in compliance with the recent decisions of federal courts on the unconstitutionality of same-sex marriage bans. [15] The state started issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples that same day. [13] [16] Among the first couples to marry were Casie McGee and Sarah Adkins, plaintiffs in McGee, who filed marriage paperwork in Huntington on October 9, and had a marriage ceremony on the steps of the Cabell County Courthouse shortly after. Chris Bostic and David Epp were the first couple to receive a marriage license in Charleston. [17]

Judge Chambers ruled on November 7 that the state's denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples was unconstitutional. [18] In July 2015, he ordered the state to pay $92,000 to the plaintiff couples in attorneys' fees. [19]

Demographics and marriage statistics

Data from the 2000 U.S. census showed that 2,916 same-sex couples were living in West Virginia. By 2005, this had increased to 3,423 couples, likely attributed to same-sex couples' growing willingness to disclose their partnerships on government surveys. Same-sex couples lived in all counties of the state, and constituted 0.7% of coupled households and 0.4% of all households in the state. Most couples lived in Kanawha, Cabell and Berkeley counties, but the counties with the highest percentage of same-sex couples were Jefferson (0.74% of all county households) and Morgan (0.62%). Same-sex partners in West Virginia were on average younger than opposite-sex partners, and more likely to be employed. In addition, the average and median household incomes of same-sex couples were higher than different-sex couples, but same-sex couples were far less likely to own a home than opposite-sex partners. 14% of same-sex couples in West Virginia were raising children under the age of 18, with an estimated 713 children living in households headed by same-sex couples in 2005. [20]

310 and 490 same-sex marriages were performed in West Virginia in 2014 and 2015, respectively, [21] [22] with most performed in Cabell County at 155, followed by Kanawha County at 107, Wood County at 61, Monongalia County at 51, Ohio County at 47, and Harrison County at 40. Same-sex marriages represented about 4% of all marriages conducted in 2015. [21] [22]

The 2020 U.S. census showed that there were 2,307 married same-sex couple households (917 male couples and 1,390 female couples) and 2,570 unmarried same-sex couple households in West Virginia. [23]

Public opinion

According to a 2016 Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) survey, West Virginia was one of the only three U.S. states where a majority of residents were opposed to same-sex marriage; the others being Arkansas and Mississippi. [24]

Public opinion for same-sex marriage in West Virginia
Poll sourceDates administeredSample sizeMargin of errorSupportOppositionDo not know / refused
Public Religion Research Institute March 9 – December 7, 2023 157 adults± 0.82%154%42%4%
Public Religion Research Institute March 11 – December 14, 2022  ? ?62%38%<0.5%
Public Religion Research Institute March 8 – November 9, 2021  ? ?56%44%<0.5%
Public Religion Research Institute January 7 – December 20, 2020 296 adults ?67%27%4%
Public Religion Research Institute April 5 – December 23, 2017 503 adults ?48%45%7%
Public Religion Research Institute May 18, 2016 – January 10, 2017 784 adults ?37%55%8%
Public Religion Research Institute April 29, 2015 – January 7, 2016 640 adults ?45%50%5%

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 Virginia Question 1</span> Amendment to the Constitution of Virginia

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Same-sex marriage has been legal in Florida since January 6, 2015, as a result of a ruling in Brenner v. Scott from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. The court ruled the state's same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional on August 21, 2014. The order was stayed temporarily. State attempts at extending the stay failed, with the U.S. Supreme Court denying further extension on December 19, 2014. In addition, a state court ruling in Pareto v. Ruvin allowed same-sex couples to obtain marriage licenses in Miami-Dade County on the afternoon of January 5, 2015. In another state case challenging the state's denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples, a Monroe County court in Huntsman v. Heavilin stayed enforcement of its decision pending appeal and the stay expired on January 6, 2015. Florida was the 35th U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in Colorado since October 7, 2014. Colorado's state constitutional ban on same-sex marriage was struck down in state district court on July 9, 2014, and by the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado on July 23, 2014. The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals had already made similar rulings with respect to such bans in Utah on June 25 and Oklahoma on July 18, which are binding precedents on courts in Colorado. On October 6, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the Tenth Circuit cases, and the Tenth Circuit lifted its stay. On October 7, the Colorado Supreme Court and the Tenth Circuit cleared the way for same-sex marriages to begin in Colorado. Colorado was the 25th U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.

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Same-sex marriage has been legal in South Carolina since a federal court order took effect on November 20, 2014. Another court ruling on November 18 had ordered the state to recognize same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions. Following the 2014 ruling of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Bostic v. Schaefer, which found Virginia's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional and set precedent on every state in the circuit, one judge accepted marriage license applications from same-sex couples until the South Carolina Supreme Court, in response to a request by the Attorney General, ordered him to stop. A federal district court ruled South Carolina's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional on November 12, with implementation of that decision stayed until noon on November 20. The first same-sex wedding ceremony was held on November 19.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Virginia</span>

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<i>Kitchen v. Herbert</i> American legal case

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Same-sex marriage has been legal in Virginia since October 6, 2014, following the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court not to hear an appeal of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling in Bostic v. Schaefer. Same-sex marriages subsequently began at 1:00 p.m. on October 6 after the Fourth Circuit issued its mandate, and since then Virginia has performed legal marriages of same-sex couples and recognized out-of-state same-sex marriages. Previously, the state had passed a statute prohibiting same-sex marriage in 1975, and further restrictions were added in 1997 and 2004, which made "void and unenforceable" any arrangements between same-sex couples bestowing the "privileges or obligations of marriage". Voters approved an amendment to the Constitution of Virginia reinforcing the existing laws in 2006. On January 14, 2014, a U.S. district court judge ruled in Bostic that Virginia's statutory and constitutional ban on the state recognition of same-sex marriages were unconstitutional, a decision upheld by the Fourth Circuit on July 28, 2014.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Mississippi since June 26, 2015. On November 25, 2014, U.S. District Court Judge Carlton W. Reeves of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi ruled that Mississippi's ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. Enforcement of his ruling was stayed pending appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples violates the U.S. Constitution. On June 29, Attorney General Jim Hood ordered clerks to comply with the court ruling and issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The Fifth Circuit lifted its stay on July 1, and Judge Reeves ordered an end to Mississippi's enforcement of its same-sex marriage ban. However, until July 2, 2015, several counties in Mississippi continued to refuse to issue marriage licenses, including DeSoto, Jasper, Jones, Newton, Pontotoc, Simpson and Yalobusha.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Missouri since the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which struck down state bans on marriages between two people of the same sex on June 26, 2015. Prior to the court ruling, the state recognized same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions pursuant to a state court ruling in October 2014, and certain jurisdictions of the state performed same-sex marriage despite a statewide ban.

<i>De Leon v. Perry</i>

De Leon v. Perry was a federal lawsuit challenging Texas marriage law, specifically the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and corresponding statutes. A U.S. district court ruled in favor of the plaintiff same-sex couples on February 26, 2014, granting their motion for a preliminary injunction. The state defendants filed an interlocutory appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, as the disposition on the motion was not a final ruling in the case. On April 14, 2014, the plaintiffs filed a motion for an expedited hearing, which was denied on May 21, 2014. The plaintiffs filed another motion for an expedited hearing on October 6, 2014, after the Supreme Court of the United States denied appeals in other marriage equality cases, and the motion was granted on October 7, 2014, setting a hearing for November 2014. However, on October 27, 2014, the Fifth Circuit set oral arguments for January 9, 2015.

<i>Bostic v. Schaefer</i> United States federal lawsuit challenging range same-sex marriage bans

Bostic v. Schaefer is a lawsuit filed in federal court in July 2013 that challenged Virginia's refusal to sanction same-sex marriages. The plaintiffs won in U.S. district court in February 2014, and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in July 2014. On August 20, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed enforcement of the Fourth Circuit's ruling pending the outcome of further litigation. State officials refused to defend the state's constitutional and statutory bans on same-sex marriage.

<i>Burns v. Hickenlooper</i>

Burns v. Hickenlooper is a lawsuit filed on July 1, 2014, in federal district court in Colorado, challenging that state's denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples. The plaintiffs' complaint alleged that the defendants have violated the Fourteenth Amendment by denying plaintiffs the fundamental right of marriage. The defendants agreed with the substance of the plaintiffs' case, but asked the district court to stay implementation of any order requiring Colorado to alter enforcement of its ban pending the outcome of other litigation. After the district court declined to grant more than a one-month stay on July 23, the state's governor and attorney general appealed and won a stay from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on August 21. Following U.S. Supreme Court action in other cases, on October 8 they asked the Tenth Circuit to dismiss their appeal and lift the stay, which would effectively legalize same-sex marriage in Colorado.

In Brenner v. Scott and its companion case, Grimsley v. Scott, a U.S. district court found Florida's constitutional and statutory bans on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. On August 21, 2014, the court issued a preliminary injunction that prevented that state from enforcing its bans and then stayed its injunction until stays were lifted in the three same-sex marriage cases then petitioning for a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court–Bostic, Bishop, and Kitchen–and for 91 days thereafter. When the district court's preliminary injunction took effect on January 6, 2015, enforcement of Florida's bans on same-sex marriage ended.

In the United States, the history of same-sex marriage dates from the early 1940s, when the first lawsuits seeking legal recognition of same-sex relationships brought the question of civil marriage rights and benefits for same-sex couples to public attention though they proved unsuccessful. However marriage wasn't a request for the LGBTQ movement until the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in Washington (1987). The subject became increasingly prominent in U.S. politics following the 1993 Hawaii Supreme Court decision in Baehr v. Miike that suggested the possibility that the state's prohibition might be unconstitutional. That decision was met by actions at both the federal and state level to restrict marriage to male-female couples, notably the enactment at the federal level of the Defense of Marriage Act.

References

  1. ↑ "West Virginia House Blocks Amendment Attempt". Queerty.com. March 31, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Jefferson County Delegate Will Not Seek Reelection". WEPM Radio News. December 22, 2011.
  3. ↑ "West Virginia Delegate John Doyle Plans Civil Unions Bill". On Top Magazine. December 23, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Bill Introduced in W.Va. Would Allow Civil Unions". WSAZ. February 17, 2012. Archived from the original on April 8, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Hospital Visitation Rights" (PDF). Hrc.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 8, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  6. ↑ Snow, Justin (October 1, 2013). "West Virginia same-sex couples file lawsuit for marriage rights". Metro Weekly. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  7. ↑ "WV AG to Intervene in Gay Marriage Case". Washington Post. November 22, 2013. Archived from the original on June 15, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Federal judge asked to dismiss West Virginia gay marriage suit". Cumberland Times-News. December 19, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Judge allows most of lawsuit challenging W.Va. gay marriage ban to proceed". Daily Journal. January 31, 2014. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
  10. ↑ White, Kate (10 June 2014). "W.Va. gay marriage suit to await higher court ruling". The Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  11. ↑ "Lambda Legal Urges Court to End Delay on Marriages in West Virginia". Lambda Legal. July 31, 2014. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  12. ↑ Chambers, Robert C. (September 16, 2014). "Order, McGee v. Cole, No. 3:13-cv-24068". U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia . Scribd.com.
  13. 1 2 Beck, Erin (October 9, 2014). "DHHR: Same-sex couples can get marriage licenses today". Charleston Gazette. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  14. ↑ Raby, John (October 9, 2014). "West Virginia attorney general says state will no longer defend ban on same-sex marriages". Star Tribune. Associated. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Governor Tomblin Issues Statement Regarding Same-Sex Marriage in West Virginia". Office of the Governor. October 9, 2014. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Meet the First Gay Couples to Get Married in West Virginia". West Virginia Public Broadcasting. October 9, 2014. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
  17. ↑ Johnson, Shauna (October 9, 2014). "First marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in West Virginia". Metro News.
  18. ↑ Johnson, Curtis (November 7, 2014). "Fed judge declares W.Va. marriage ban unconstitutional". Herald-Dispatch. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  19. ↑ Kennedy, John (July 17, 2015). "Judge Cuts Attorneys' Fees In W.Va. Same-Sex Marriage Case". www.law360.com.
  20. ↑ "Census Snapshot" (PDF). Williams Institute. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  21. 1 2 "West Virginia Vital Statistics 2014" (PDF). wvdhhr.org. September 2016.
  22. 1 2 "West Virginia Vital Statistics 2015" (PDF). wvdhhr.org. April 2017.
  23. ↑ "PCT1405 Couple Households, By Type". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  24. ↑ "PRRI: American Values Atlas 2016: West Virginia". American Values Atlas. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
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