Citing Previous Rulings, Federal Judge Throws Out Arizona Gay-Marriage Ban

In a process that will surely be repeated across the United States, a federal judge in Arizona ruled that the state's ban on gay marriage was unconstitutional.

U.S. District Judge John W. Sedwick said that the legal opinion in his circuit is clear: The Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit decided state bans on gay marriage are unconstitutional and the Supreme Court has refused to hear appeals for those cases.

For that reason, Sedwick ordered that the state "permanently cease enforcement of those provisions of Arizona law declared unconstitutional by this order."

In simple terms, this means that gay marriages will begin immediately in the state.

The Arizona Republic reports that the state's attorney general, Tom Horne, said he would not appeal the ruling. The paper reports: