Third Florida Judge in 18 Days Declares State’s Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 4, 2014
CONTACT: ACLU of Florida Media Office, media@aclufl.org, (786) 363-2737
MIAMI, FL – Today, Broward County Circuit Court Judge Dale Cohen issued a ruling declaring unconstitutional the state of Florida’s constitutional and statutory bans on the recognition of marriages and other unions of same-sex couples. The decision, which is the result of a dissolution action brought by a woman whose civil-union partner had disappeared, comes just days following rulings from state-court judges in Monroe and Miami-Dade Counties striking down the state’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples. The ruling was immediately stayed by the judge “pending the outcome of expected appeals” in the other cases.
Responding to today’s ruling, ACLU of Florida LGBT rights staff attorney Daniel Tilley stated:
“Courts in Florida and across the country are recognizing that there is no basis to deny lesbian and gay couples the protections of marriage that heterosexual couples depend on. Those protections include not only critical supports for families as couples build their lives together, but also access to the mechanism of dissolution to sort out various issues in the event a couple separates.
The judge’s ruling is available here: http://aclufl.org/resources/brassner-v-lade-order/
The constitutionality of Florida’s refusal to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples that were entered into out of state is also at the center of a challenge brought by the ACLU of Florida on behalf of eight couples, a Ft. Myers widow, and SAVE, South Florida’s largest LGBT rights organization. That case, which names Florida Governor Rick Scott and Attorney General Pam Bondi along with other state officials as defendants, is currently before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, and a decision is expected soon. More information on that case is available here: www.aclufl.org/marriageequality
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About the ACLU of Florida The ACLU of Florida is freedom's watchdog, working daily in the courts, legislature and throughout Florida to defend individual rights and personal freedoms guaranteed by the United States and Florida Constitutions and the Bill of Rights. For additional information, visit our web site at: www.aclufl.org
