April Deboer (L) and her partner Jayne Rowse leave the Federal Court with their attorney Dana Nessel.
The next
domino has fallen, making Michigan the 18th state with marriage equality.
Detroit—A U.S. district judge has overturned Michigan’s bans on gay marriage and same-sex adoption.
The ruling by Judge Bernard Friedman’s ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by Hazel Park nurses April DeBoer, 42, and Jayne Rowse, 49, who are living as a couple, raising three special needs children they adopted as individuals.
Their lawsuit challenged the constitutionality of the laws banning gay marriage and adoption by same-sex couples.
As of now, it's unclear whether the state will appeal the ruling, and Judge Friedman has apparently not
stayed his ruling while the state decides. Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette
said before the ruling that appeal was possible, in which case the state would continue to ban marriage licenses, though county clerks around the state have said they are ready to issue them.