Federal Judge Upholds Louisiana Marriage Laws as Constitutional
“No Fundamental Right” to Redefine Marriage
September 4, 2014 – A federal judge in Louisiana has upheld its state’s marriage laws defining marriage as between one man and one woman. The decision follows closely a judge upholding Tennessee’s marriage laws and the U.S. Supreme Court halting the redefinition of marriage in Virginia, staying an appeals court ruling that struck down Virginia’s marriage laws. The decision is expected to be appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The Fifth Circuit also has before it the federal court decision from Texas, which struck down Texas marriage laws earlier this year.
In a strong ruling, Judge Martin L.C. Feldman found that “Louisiana has a legitimate interest… in linking children to an intact family formed by their two biological parents,” and that accordingly “Louisiana’s decision to neither permit nor recognize same-sex marriage, formed in the arena of the democratic process, is supported by a rational basis.” Judge Feldman further explained “there is simply no fundamental right, historically or traditionally, to same-sex marriage.”
Texas Values president, Jonathan Saenz, released the following statement on the decision:
“This common sense ruling protecting marriage upholds the will of the people and upholds what the U.S. Supreme Court told us last year in the Windsor decision, states have the absolute right to define marriage as one man, one woman. The lawless and rogue streak of legislating from the bench on marriage has been broken, and rightly so. The Federal government and activist judges have no authority to redefine marriage in Louisiana, Texas, or any other state. Other federal judges that have ruled against such voter-approved laws on marriage are simply making up their own law as they go and thumbing their nose at the American people and our highest court. “
Texas Values recently launched the Texas Marriage Declaration and thousands of Texans have declared their support for marriage and for Texas’ right to self-governance. The state of Texas is currently appealing a recent decision by a lone Federal Judge to strike down the states’ marriage laws. Texas Values has filed a brief in the case. More information on the Texas Marriage Declaration can be found at TexasMarriageDeclaration.com.
Read Judge Feldman’s ruling here.
About Texas Values
Texas Values is a non-profit organization dedicated to standing for faith, family, and freedom in Texas. More information is available at txvalues.org.