Geiger v. Kitzhaber
| Geiger v. Kitzhaber | |
|---|---|
| Court | United States District Court for the District of Oregon |
| Full case name | Deanna L. Geiger and Janine M. Nelson, William Griesar and Robert Duehmig, Plaintiffs and Paul Rummell and Benjamin West, Lisa Chickadonz and Christine Tanner, Basic Rights Education Fund, Plaintiffs v. John Kitzhaber, in his official capacity as Governor of the State of Oregon, Ellen Rosenblum, in her official capacity as Oregon Attorney General, Jennifer Woodward, in her official capacity as State Registrar, Center of Health Statistics, and Randy Walruff, in his official capacity as Multnomah County Assessor, Defendants |
| Argued | April 23, 2014 |
| Decided | May 19, 2014 |
| Docket nos. | 6:13-cv-01834 |
| Citation | 994 F. Supp. 2d 1128 |
| Case history | |
| Subsequent actions | U.S. Court of Appeals (No. 14-35427, 9th Cir.) May 4, 2014: Appeal by movants National Organization for Marriage denied intervenor status lodged. May 19, 2014: Emergency motion for stay of injunction by proposed intervenors denied. Aug. 27, 2014: Appeal ordered dismissed. (Order) Nov. 24, 2014: Request for initial en banc hearing denied. Dec. 3, 2014: Mandate to dismiss case issued. U.S. Supreme Court May 27, 2014: Application for stay lodged sub nom. National Organization for Marriage, Inc. v. Geiger. Jun. 4, 2014: Stay denied, 2014 WL 2514491. (Order) |
| Holding | |
| Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment granted. Oregon's marriage laws that exclude "same-gender" gay and lesbian couples violate equal protection | |
| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | Michael J. McShane |
| Keywords | |
| Same-sex marriage, equal protection, due process, marriage equality, discrimination | |
Geiger v. Kitzhaber is a decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon that requires Oregon to allow same-sex couples to marry and to recognize same-sex marriages established in other jurisdictions. The decision arose from two consolidated cases that alleged that Oregon's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, Article 15, § 5, and all related marriage statutes, violate the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Among the several defendants, Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum filed appearances in the case to defend Oregon's position, but declined to defend the constitutionality of the bans and ordered state agencies to recognize the validity of same-sex marriages established elsewhere.
U.S. District Judge Michael J. McShane ruled on May 19, 2014, that Oregon's constitution and statutes restricting marriage rights for same-sex couples violate the U.S. Constitution and ordered an immediate end to their enforcement.
The National Organization for Marriage, an organization opposed to same-sex marriage, tried without success to intervene in the suit, to stay enforcement of the district court decision, and to appeal that decision.