Yesterday, a Louisiana state trial court declared the state's ban on same-sex marriage and its refusal to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere unconstitutional. The full text of the opinion has apparently not yet been publicly released, but BuzzFeed News reports that it was permitted to review a copy of the decision on the condition that it not post it or quote directly from it. (The decision was sealed because it involves the adoption of a minor.) BuzzFeed reports that the 23-page opinion invalidates the bans on the basis of the equal protection, due process and Full-Faith-And-Credit clauses. The Louisiana Department of Justice plans to appeal directly to the state Supreme Court and has already asked the trial court to suspend its order pending appeal. The trial court's invalidation of the state's same sex marriage ban comes less than a month after a Louisiana federal district court upheld the ban. (See prior posting.)
UPDATE: Here is the full opinion in Costanza v. Caldwell, (LA Dist. Ct., Sept. 22, 2014).
