US Supreme Court Put On Hold Same Sex Marriage In The State Of Utah

The US Supreme Court has halted same-sex marriages in the State of Utah pending a legal challenge to the state's ban on gay nuptials

Gay marriage had been allowed in Utah since December 20,2013when a judge ruled the state's ban was unconstitutional.

More than 900 same-sex couples have been wed since then.

The US Supreme Court halts same-sex marriage until a Denver-based federal appeals court decides whether to uphold the ruling overturning the ban.

The Denver-based US Court of the Appeals for the 10th Circuit has twice rejected attempts by Utah to stop the weddings pending appeal.

Utah's ban against same-sex marriage was passed by voters in the overwhelmingly conservative state in 2004.

In the Dec 20,2013 Ruling, Federal District Judge Robert Shelby said the ban violated same-sex couples' right to equal protection under the law, and found that Utah had failed to show that allowing gay marriage would harm opposite-sex couples.

Note
Same Sex Marriages are Legal in 17 States in USA

• California
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Illinois
• Iowa
• Maine
• New Jersy
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Minnesotta
• New Hamshire
• New York
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Washington State
• New Mexico
• Hawaii

The remaining 33 states do not legally sanction gay marriage, but laws vary greatly. Some states have civil union laws that grant couples most if not all of the rights and benefits of marriage.
Other states have passed bans or state constitutional amendments forbidding such unions. Others, like Oregon, ban same-sex marriage but recognise couples married in other states.