News (USA)

North Dakota AG: It’s my duty to defend state’s same-sex marriage ban

BISMARCK, N.D. -- The North Dakota Attorney General says he hasn't seen the lawsuit challenging the state's ban on same-sex marriage yet, but he notes that it's his duty to defend the state when it's sued.
By · Updated on July 2, 2014
North Dakota AG: It’s my duty to defend state’s same-sex marriage ban

BISMARCK, N.D. — The North Dakota Attorney General says he hasn’t seen the lawsuit challenging the state’s ban on same-sex marriage yet, but he notes that it’s his duty to defend the state when it’s sued.

Wayne Stenehjem
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (R-N.D.)

Seven couples filed a federal lawsuit challenging the ban on same-sex marriage Friday in Fargo.

North Dakota had been the last remaining state that wasn’t facing a legal challenge from same-sex couples.

Wayne Stenehjem says ultimately, only the U.S. Supreme Court can determine whether North Dakota’s law is constitutional.

The lawsuit challenges both North Dakota’s constitutional ban on gay marriage and its refusal to recognize marriages of same-sex couples who legally wed in other states.

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