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Pennsylvania's ban on gay marriage was overturned by a federal judge Tuesday in a decision that legalized same-sex unions throughout the Northeast and sent couples racing to pick up licenses.U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III called the plaintiffs - a widow, 11 couples and one couple's teenage daughters - courageous for challenging the constitutionality of the ban passed by lawmakers in 1996.VIDEO: Watch Kelly Brennan's reportIn Pittsburgh, Action News 4's Kelly Brennan reports that at the local rally, Peter Karlovich surprised his partner Steve Herforth with a proposal. While on stage, Karlovich announced "Because of this location, I thought it would be a great time to ask Steve a question." Karlovich proposed in front of a cheering crowd. The couple first lived together in Shadyside, near Tuesday's rally. Herforth said he had no idea the proposal was coming. "I've been waiting for this for 28 years and I've been asking him for so long 'when are we going to get married' and he said 'when it's legal,'" said Herforth, through tears.-------------------------------------------"We are a better people than what these laws represent, and it is time to discard them into the ash heap of history," the judge wrote.The judge declined to put his ruling on hold for a possible appeal by Republican Gov. Tom Corbett, so it went into immediate effect. The governor, who opposes gay marriage, did not issue a statement or indicate whether he would appeal.However, his state party chairman complained that an "activist" judge had usurped the power of the Legislature.Amid a frenzy of celebration across the state, county offices in Philadelphia stayed open late to handle marriage applications, while officials in Pittsburgh were closed for election day but accepting them online. Couples must wait three days before getting married, unless a sympathetic judge grants a waiver.LINK: Apply Online for Allegheny County's Marriage License Application FormNews of the ruling prompted rallies in the Pittsburgh area on Tuesday night. In Shadyside, supporters packed Ellsworth Avenue to celebrate."I hope you rock the marriage license counter over the next couple of days," City Council President Bruce Kraus told the crowd.Joe Parisi told his partner to "jet out of work" and get to Philadelphia City Hall."We didn't want to take the chance of having this be challenged and missing out on our opportunity," said Parisi, a Philadelphia resident who plans to marry Steven Seminelli.They were among the first to get a license Tuesday afternoon, just hours after the judge's ruling.The judge also ordered Pennsylvania to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere.Vic Walczak, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, which pursued the case, said of the ruling: "It's everything we had hoped for.""There's nothing that the government can do that's more intrusive than standing in the way of two people who love each other and want to get married," Walczak said.State marriage bans have been falling around the country since the U.S. Supreme Court last year struck down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. If Tuesday's decision stands, Pennsylvania would become the 19th state to legalize gay marriage and 43 percent of Americans would live in a state with full marriage equality, according to the advocacy group Freedom to Marry.The ACLU had argued that the bans deprive same-sex couples and their families of the legal protections, tax benefits and social statuses afforded to married couples.Corbett's office was left to defend the law after Democratic Attorney General Kathleen Kane refused to do so. A spokesman for Corbett's office said it was reviewing the legal issues presented in the opinion.The Pennsylvania lawsuit, filed July 9, was the first known challenge to the state ban. At least five later test cases emerged, including one over a suburban county's decision last year to issue 174 marriage licenses to same-sex couples, before a court shut them down. Officials in Montgomery County were trying Tuesday to have that order lifted.Oregon became the 18th state to recognize same-sex marriage on Monday, when jubilant couples began applying for marriage licenses immediately after a U.S. District Court judge invalidated its voter-approved same-sex marriage ban.Also Monday, a federal judge in Utah ordered state officials to recognize more than 1,000 gay marriages that took place in the state over a two-week period before the U.S. Supreme Court halted same-sex weddings with an emergency stay.Jones, a Republican and an appointee of then-President George W. Bush, was previously known for a 2005 decision in which he barred a Pennsylvania school district from teaching intelligent design in biology class, saying it was "a mere re-labeling of creationism."The torrent of celebration from Democrats and supporters Tuesday was met by criticism from state Republicans, who as recently as 2012 endorsed a platform defining marriage as between a man and a woman."An activist judiciary has substituted its judgment in place of the law created by the elected representatives of Pennsylvania," chairman Rob Gleason said, "and has stifled the ongoing debate of people with differing points of view.Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald Statement on Court Decision on DOMA“We are pleased that the Court is affirming the rights of all people to form a marriage union to express their commitments, form a family in the eyes of the law, and have their rights recognized. This is what we have been advocating for quite some time and it is a day to celebrate.”Although Allegheny County offices are closed today, those who wish to apply for their marriage license may do so online now here. Same sex couples should disregard the references to groom versus bride in the online process. An email address is required, and a confirmation number will be sent to you once the application process is complete. Both applicants must then appear together, in person, at the Marriage License Bureau to complete the process. Photo identification is required. The Marriage License Bureau is located on the first floor of the City-County Building, 414 Grant Street, Pittsburgh. It opens on Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. and will remain open until 7:30 p.m. Those interested may also visit http://www.alleghenycounty.us/wo/plan.aspx for information on options available for visiting the office during tomorrow’s extended hours.Pittsburgh Mayor William Peduto Statement on DOMA“I am overjoyed by the judge’s decision today, and can’t wait to throw open the doors of the Mayor’s Office to honor marriages of all couples. I would be thrilled to make the marriage of an LGBT couple the first one I officiate as Mayor.”Bishop David Zubik's Statement on the Overruling of DOMA"Our respect for every person regardless of race, creed, gender or sexual identity is a fundamental Catholic value. We believe in the sacredness of human life, which is rooted in both natural law and our faith. We do not and will not support any discrimination against any person or groups of people.But to disagree with today’s federal decision redefining marriage is not a matter of discrimination. The traditional definition of marriage between a woman and a man is natural and true to the human condition and the beauty of family life.We as a culture have been steadily eroding the strength of our families by undermining the sacredness of marriage. The decision rendered today simply is another step down that road. It waters down the meaning of marriage.Throughout the ages, marriage has always been heterosexual. Its nature is to provide strong families in which children are brought into the world to be nurtured by both a father and a mother. Same-sex civil marriage tampers with this design because any children are innately deprived of a mother or a father.This decision opens the door to further redefinition of marriage in ways that are harmful to society at large and most especially to children.As natural law has recognized for thousands of years, marriage between a man and a woman is fundamental to family. And the family is central to a healthy, vibrant society. This decision undermines both the true meaning of marriage and the strength of our families."Slideshow: Same-sex couple married by Braddock mayorSlideshow: Same-Sex Marriage by StateSlideshow: Same-sex Marriage By the NumbersSlideshow: Gay Marriage Around the WorldSlideshow: Republicans Who Support Gay Marriage