[JURIST] Two federal judges on Tuesday struck down same-sex marriage bans in Arkansas and Mississippi [opinions, PDF]. The rulings overturned the voter-approved bans that had been in place for over a decade. US District Judge Carlton Wayne Reeves of Jackson placed his decision declaring the ban a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment on hold for two weeks to allow time for an appeal. In Arkansas US District Judge Kristine Baker declared the ban unconstitutional for restricting the right for a lesbian couple to marry. A recent Louisiana ruling upholding a same-sex marriage ban [JURIST report] is currently being appealed to the US Supreme Court.

The debate on same-sex marriage [JURIST backgrounder] has continued as courts across the country have rendered disparate decisions. Last week a federal judge struck down [JURIST report] Montana’s same-sex marriage ban. Also last week the Supreme Court issued an order [JURIST report] refusing to block same-sex marriages in South Carolina. Many states now seek to take their legislation on same-sex marriages to the highest court in the land. Earlier this month the Supreme Court was asked to review [JURIST report] bans from Michigan and Kentucky that were recently upheld by the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. A circuit split typically encourages the Supreme Court to grant review. However, in October the Supreme Court declined to hear [JURIST report] seven pending same-sex marriage cases, allowing those appeals court rulings to stand and effectively legalizing same-sex marriage in several states.