Judge Timothy Black ruled on Monday ordered the state of Ohio to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples performed in other states, according to Reuters.
Black ruled that Ohio's refusal to recognize gay marriage is a violation of constitutional rights and "unenforceable in all circumstances," Reuters reported.
"The record before this court ... is staggeringly devoid of any legitimate justification for the state's ongoing arbitrary discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation," Black wrote in the ruling, according to Reuters.
Ohio plans to appeal Black's ruling, arguing the state has a sovereign right to ban gay marriage, which voters did in 2004, Reuters reported.
On Monday, Al Gerhardstein, the civil rights attorney who filed the lawsuit that led to Black's ruling, said he's been speaking with several gay couples who want to win the right to marry in Ohio, according to Reuters. He plans to file a lawsuit in the matter in the next couple weeks.
Black delayed deciding whether to issue a stay of Monday's ruling pending appeal until after attorneys on both sides present arguments on the issue by Tuesday, Reuters reported. Black said he's inclined to put the ruling on hold pending appeal, except for a portion that applies to the four gay couples who filed the February lawsuit that led to the court case.
If Black declines to stay his ruling, that would allow gay couples in Ohio to obtain the same benefits as any other married couple in the state, including property rights and the right to make some medical decisions for their partner, according to Reuters.
Republican Ohio Governor John Kasich opposes equal rights and said in a statement that he supports Ohio's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, and is glad the attorney general is appealing the ruling, Reuters reported.
Phil Burress chaired the 2004 effort to ban same-sex marriage and has said his group is prepared to fight any ballot initiative to repeal the ban, according to Reuters.
Gay marriage is legal in 17 states and Washington, D.C. with federal judges recently striking down gay marriage bans in Michigan, Utah, Texas, Oklahoma and Virginia, Reuters reported.
Similar to Ohio's ruling, judges in Kentucky and Tennessee have ordered state officials to recognize out-of-state gay marriages, according to Reuters. The Kentucky decision has been stayed pending appeal, while Tennessee's ruling applies to only three couples.
