After a federal court ruled last week that Wisconsin’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional, the Lincoln County Clerk of Courts office is now accepting applications for same-sex marriage licenses.
Lincoln County Clerk Chris Marlowe issued a statement Thursday on how Lincoln County is handling the issue.
A federal district court has ruled that “art. XIII, § 13 of the Wisconsin Constitution violates plaintiffs’ fundamental right to marry and their right to equal protection of laws under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
The court further held that, “any Wisconsin statutory provisions, including those in Wisconsin Statutes chapter 765, that limit marriages to a ‘husband’ and a ‘wife,’ are unconstitutional as applied to same-sex couples.”
Wisconsin Statute Sec. 765.12 (1) requires that the county clerk issue marriage licenses if certain statutes are complied with and there is no prohibition against or legal objection to the marriage.
“In light of the federal court ruling, the Lincoln County Clerk’s office will now accept applications for same sex marriages,” Marlowe said.