Judge issues no decision in Texas' same-sex marriage ban

SAN ANTONIO — A San Antonio courtroom on Wednesday became the epicenter of the debate over Texas' same-sex marriage ban, and whether it holds up to the Constitution.

U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia did not immediately rule on a pre-trial request to temporarily bar Texas from enforcing its ban while a lawsuit filed by two gay couples winds its way through the court system.

Ultimately, Garcia acknowledged, the issue will probably be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in a divided vote.

Plaintiffs Nicole Dimetman, her spouse Cleo DeLeon, and Vic Holmes and his life partner, Mark Phariss, whom were featured in a story this weekend in the San Antonio Express-News, allege the 2005 ban treats the LGBT community unequally.

“Texas marriage law does not violate their right to marry,” argued Assistant Texas Solicitor General Michael Murphy, explaining that it doesn't bar such unions as long as they're done outside the state.

Gay couples from left, Cleopatra De Leon, Nicole Dimetman, Mark Phariss and Victor Holmes, react at a press conference after U.S. Federal Judge Orlando Garcia granted a preliminary injunction after they sued the state of Texas couples to strike down the gay marriage ban, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2014. less Gay couples from left, Cleopatra De Leon, Nicole Dimetman, Mark Phariss and Victor Holmes, react at a press conference after U.S. Federal Judge Orlando Garcia granted a preliminary injunction after they sued ... more Photo: Jerry Lara, San Antonio Express-News Photo: Jerry Lara, San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 152 Caption Close Judge issues no decision in Texas' same-sex marriage ban 1 / 152 Back to Gallery

Such an argument is “ludicrous,” shot back the couples' lawyer, Neel Lane.

“It's like holding someone's head under water and saying, 'You're free to breathe, you're just not free to breathe air,'” he told the judge.

Read more about the hearing in the San Antonio Express-News and on the web at ExpressNews.com.

gcontreras@express-news.net

Twitter: @gmaninfedland