St. Joseph County Council Debates Proposed Abortion Restriction
|

St. Joseph County Council Debates Proposed Abortion Restriction

Indiana has been at the center of a number of controversial anti-abortion laws in the past several years. The legislature’s measures have ranged from mandates that women receiving an abortion procedure be informed that “objective scientific information shows that a fetus can feel pain” at or before 20 weeks into a pregnancy — a contention…

St. Joseph County Now Issuing Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
| |

St. Joseph County Now Issuing Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples

Marriage licenses are being issued to same-sex couples in St. Joseph County beginning today. The County Clerk’s office says that they began issuing the licenses this morning after receiving word from the 7th Circuit Appeals Court in Chicago that a stay on their ruling — which found Indiana’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional — had been…

| | | |

Appeals Court Rules Indiana and Wisconsin Gay Marriage Bans Unconstitutional

A three judge panel in Chicago has thrown out same-sex marriage bans in Indiana and Wisconsin. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that the states’ bans were unconstitutional. The ruling came months after lower federal courts found the bans violated basic rights of Indiana and Wisconsin citizens. “Same-sex couples, who would otherwise qualify…

| |

Second Indiana Judge Rules Right-to-Work Law Unconstitutional

A second Indiana judge has ruled right-to-work unconstitutional. Lake County Circuit Court Judge George Paras struck down the 2012 law that bans employers from collecting union fees from non-union employees. Opponents of the law claim that right-to-work gives an incentive for employees at companies where unionization was approved to freeload and not pay their dues….

| |

10th Circuit Appeals Court Strikes Down Oklahoma Gay Marriage Ban

The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled on Friday that Oklahoma’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. The voter-approved referendum passed with 75 percent support in the heavily conservative state in 2004. The New York Times reports that the panel ruled that the ban was overly broad. “Oklahoma’s ban on same-sex…