Federal judge puts Alabama same-sex marriage decision on hold News
Federal judge puts Alabama same-sex marriage decision on hold

[JURIST] A judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Alabama [official website] on Sunday put a two-week hold on a decision overturning Alabama’s same-sex marriage ban. Judge Callie VS Granade stated [AP report] that the two-week stay is not intended to become lengthy hold on current same-sex couples’ right to marry. Last week Grandade struck down [JURIST report] the Alabama Sanctity of Marriage Amendment and the Alabama Marriage Protection Act [text], ruling them unconstitutional. Applying strict scrutiny, Granade found the marriage laws violated the due process and equal protection clauses [Cornell LII backgrounders] of the Fourteenth Amendment [text] of the US Constitution. Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange [official website] agrees with the hold but initially pushed [press release] for the decision not to go into effect until the US Supreme Court issues a decision on same-sex marriage this summer.

Same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive] continues to be one of the most important topics in the US today. The Supreme Court agreed earlier this month to rule [JURIST report] on same-sex marriage, granting certiorari [order list, PDF] in four cases. The court consolidated appeals from Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee after the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld bans [JURIST report] in those states. The court granted one hour and 90 minutes for oral arguments, which will likely be held in April with a decision expected in June. The four consolidated cases are Obergefell v. Hodges, Tanco v. Haslam, DeBoer v. Snyder and Bourke v. Beshear [dockets].

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.