U.S. District Court Judge John Heyburn has struck down Kentucky's ban on recognizing same-sex marriages performed outside the state.
U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., issued a statement commending the judge's ruling: “I am proud of the four Kentucky families who are standing up for marriage equality in this lawsuit and of the thousands more who continue this fight every day. Today’s ruling is an important step forward in the march toward recognition of all marriages under the law and full equality in our Commonwealth.”
Meanwhile, the Family Foundation issued a statement taking the opposite point of view. According to the foundation's news release: "Kentucky marriage policy will now be dictated from places like Boston and San Francisco," said Martin Cothran, a spokesman for The Family Foundation said in the release.
"If a state like Utah were ever to legalize polygamy, Kentucky would be forced to recognize it under this decision."
Cothran said Kentucky voters will be disappointed with the practical effects of this decision.
"This decision puts Kentucky voters on notice that if their reasons for defining marriage as between a man and a woman don't correspond with the political ideology of liberal judges, their votes don't count."
