Richard Wolf

USA TODAY



A federal appeals court on Tuesday added two — and potentially five — states to the list of those where gays and lesbians can get married. The decision likely will raise the number of states with same-sex marriage to 35.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, in a unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel, struck down same-sex marriage bans in Idaho and Nevada. The court has jurisdiction over three other states with bans still in place: Alaska, Arizona and Montana. Those bans now are likely to fall as well.

The court's action came just a day after the Supreme Court refused to reconsider similar appeals of court decisions striking down gay marriage bans in Utah, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Indiana and Virginia.

The high court's action on Monday immediately spread gay marriage to those five states, bringing to 24 the number with legal same-sex marriage. Because the appeals courts that had struck down those five bans also have jurisdiction over Colorado, Kansas, Wyoming, West Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, the number already was projected to jump to 30 states.

‏"All across the country now, couples who love each other are able to join in that most meaningful of unions," President Obama said Tuesday at a fundraiser in New York City.

More states could be on the way — unless the next appeals court ruling goes the other way, which is possible. The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals heard cases from Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee in early August but has not issued its decision. That three-judge panel included two judges appointed by President George W. Bush.

The 9th Circuit's decision in Idaho's case can be appealed, but with the Supreme Court's action Monday, the result does not appear to be in doubt. The Nevada case will not be appealed.

"Idaho and Nevada's marriage laws, by preventing same-sex couples from marrying and refusing to recognize same-sex marriages celebrated elsewhere, impose profound legal, financial, social and psychic harms on numerous citizens of those states," the court said. "These harms are not inflicted on opposite-sex couples."

"The lessons of our constitutional history are clear: Inclusion strengthens, rather than weakens, our most important institutions," the opinion by Judge Stephen Reinhardt said. "When we integrated our schools, education improved. When we opened our juries to women, our democracy became more vital. When we allowed lesbian and gay soldiers to serve openly in uniform, it enhanced unit cohesion. When same-sex couples are married, just as when opposite-sex couples are married, they serve as models of loving commitment to all."