U.S. District Court judge rules Utah’s
anti-polgyamy law unconstitutional
Yesterday U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups issued a 91-page ruling in which he found key parts of Utah’s polygamy ban unconstitutional. Polygamist Kody Brown and wives of Sister Wives fame had brought the case before the court. Specifically, Waddoups ruled that the state cannot ban cohabitation, which includes “religious cohabitation.” Waddoups also distinguished between marrying and purporting to marry, thus steering clear of opining as to whether or not a state must issue multiple marriage licenses. Readers of this blog and of our book “It’s Not About the Sex” My Ass are well aware of Utah’s historical, back-and-forth love-hate relationship with polygamy. Surely more back-and-forth is to come, so stay tuned. Click here and here and here to read The Salt Lake Tribune’s reports on the ruling. |