One of the two federal lawsuits challenging Virginia’s same-sex
marriage ban is set to have its first court hearing take place in
Norfolk on January 30. The Washington Blade reports:
Judge
Arenda L. Wright Allen of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia will hold the hearing in the lawsuit that Tim
Bostic and Tony London [pictured] of Norfolk filed in July. Carol Schall
and Mary Townley of Richmond are also plaintiffs in the case the
American Foundation for Equal Rights joined in September.
“This case is about liberty,” David Boies said during a Sept. 30 press conference in D.C. during
which AFER formally announced he and Ted Olson, who argued against
California’ s Proposition before the U.S. Supreme Court, had joined the
case. “It’s about the pursuit of happiness. It’s about the inalienable
right of every individual to marry the person who they love.”
It remains to be seen if newly elected Virginia Governor Terry
McAuliffe and Attorney General Mark Herring will defend the state’s ban
on same-sex marriage in court. Both support nuptials for gays and
lesbians. Additionally, McAuliffe’s first official act as governor after
being sworn in this weekend was to sign an executive order banning discrimination against LGBT state employees.
The other marriage equality lawsuit, filed by the American Civil
Liberties Union, Lambda Legal, and the ACLU of Virginia back in August,
received a hearing in federal court back in October.
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