Massachusetts court to hear bid to halt same-sex marriages
BOSTON Massachusetts' highest court hears a bid tomorrow to halt same-sex marriages until voters can weigh in on the contentious issue. Around five-thousand such marriages have taken place since they were legalized one year ago at the insistence of the state's Supreme Judicial Court.
A lawsuit was filed by C-J Doyle, executive director of the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts. It claims the marriages interfere with voters' right to participate in the debate on a proposed constitutional ban of same-sex marriages.
In March 2004, the state Legislature approved a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage. But lawmakers must pass the measure a second time, either this year or next, before it can reach the statewide ballot in November 2006.
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