The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld laws Thursday concerning same-sex marriage bans in Ohio and three other states in a 2-1 ruling, giving momentum to a possible U.S. Supreme Court decision in the future.
The ruling covered six cases: two from Ohio, two from Kentucky, one from Michigan and one from Tennessee. Those cases now have the option to turn over to the U.S. Supreme Court, which could rule whether or not bans on same-sex marriages are constitutional.
Judge Jeffery Sutton wrote in the Cincinnati-based decision that "Through a mixture of common law decisions, statutes, and constitutional provisions, each State in the Sixth Circuit has long adhered to the traditional definition of marriage. Sixteen gay and lesbian couples claim this definition violates their rights under the Fourteenth Amendment."
Sutton continued that each case came down to the same conflict regarding whose responsibility it was to decide whether the U.S. Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment prohibits a state from defining marriage solely to exist between one man and one woman.
Anna Schmidt, a 5th-year OU student studying history, said the ruling was "complete and utter bullshit" Thursday evening.
"When you look at what the general population things, a majority of Americans are in favor of gay marriage. We need representatives to represent us, or get out of office."
