SALEM, Ore. - In a victory for marriage and the people of Oregon, a circuit court judge in Oregon today issued a ruling that upheld the constitutionality of Measure 36, passed overwhelming by voters on Nov. 2 of last year.
Measure 36 is an amendment to the Oregon Constitution that affirms marriage as between one man and one woman.
"The people have a right to determine public policy and protect marriage by the amendment process," said Glen Lavy, senior vice president of the Alliance Defense Fund's Marriage Litigation Center. "The judge made the right call in respecting the people of Oregon and not legislating from the bench."
The opposition claimed that the measure violated Oregon's "separate vote" requirement and that the measure was not a "law or amendment" but a "mere statement of policy." Circuit Court Judge Joseph C. Guimond rejected this argument stating that the "changes made by Measure 36 are closely related and do not run afoul of the separate vote requirement."
The full text of the opinion in the case,
Martinez v. Kulongoski, from the Circuit Court of Oregon, Third Judicial District, can be read at
www.telladf.org/UserDocs/measure36oregon.pdf. ADF funded a successful intervention into the case on behalf of the Defense of Marriage Coalition, represented by ADF-allied attorney Kelly Clark of Portland.
For more information on the battle to protect marriage, visit
www.domawatch.org.
ADF is a legal alliance defending America's first liberty--religious freedom--through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.
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