Kim Deckard, left, and Amanda Biggs, right, hold their son Max Deckard-Biggs, as they are married on the steps of the Monroe County Justice Building by Reverend Mary Ann Macklin. A federal judge struck down the Indiana gay marriage ban. The ruling made gay weddings legal in Indiana. Staff photo by Jeremy Hogan
Lindsey Erdody and Rachel Bunn, Herald-Times
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence ordered state agencies Wednesday not to recognize any gay marriages that were performed in the state last month.
Same-sex couples were legally allowed to marry in Indiana on three days last month after a federal judge struck down the state’s statutory ban June 25. The Indiana Attorney General’s Office initially requested a stay order from U.S. District Judge Richard Young, but after two days of no response, the request was sent to the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.
The court of appeals granted the stay June 27, stopping county clerk’s from issuing any more marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
During the short period of time that same-sex couples were allowed to legally wed, hundreds of ceremonies were performed across the state, including about 80 in Monroe County.
The stay already meant the marriages were in legal limbo until the 7th Circuit rules on the case. One marriage — between Amy Sandler and Niki Quasney — was allowed to be recognized, and the governor agreed to allow that as well. Quasney is fighting advanced ovarian cancer.
Legal scholars say the governor’s decision makes things even more complicated for newly married same-sex couples who are already unsure of what rights they have.
“For any state law purposes, it seems as if those couples have reverted to where they were before,” said Steve Sanders, associate professor of law at Indiana University.
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