Saturday, June 28, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Gay marriage foe says court ruling will spur national ban

RENO -- Nevada opponents of same-sex marriage said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down a Texas sodomy law will invigorate a national move for a constitutional ban against gay unions.

"This will probably get the momentum going to a national constitutional movement protecting marriage," Richard Ziser said Friday.

Ziser is chairman of the Coalition for the Protection of Marriage, the group that spearheaded the anti-gay marriage movement in Nevada.

Question 2, overwhelmingly approved by voters in 2000 and 2002, amended the Nevada Constitution to define marriage as only being between a man and a woman.

Three dozen states have adopted similar marriage laws, Ziser said.

The high court's 6-3 decision on Thursday overturned the Texas sodomy statute and nullified similar laws in other states, not including Nevada.

Legal observers said the court's ruling could open the door for expanding the rights of gays and lesbians, including the right to marry.

Allen Lichtenstein, general counsel in Las Vegas for the American Civil Liberties Union in Nevada, was cautious when weighing the decision's implications for Nevada's constitutional ban on gay marriages.

While the ruling didn't specifically address the issue of gay marriage, he said, language in the order suggests a new leaning toward gay rights issues.