By Kevin Lavery, KWMU
St. Louis, MO. – The Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis is reviewing a Nebraska law banning same-sex marriages.
The American Civil Liberties Union is asking a three-judge panel to uphold a lower court ruling that stated the ban deprived gays and lesbians of political participation.
The ACLU says same-sex couples cannot ask lawmakers for the same domestic partnership benefits heterosexuals receive. But Nebraska chief deputy attorney general Matt McNair says they can do so by other means:
"They can get those benefits through contract, through will, through power of attorney or by lobbying the legislature for rights based on individual status, not based on recognition of the relationship," McNair said. "So the only thing that's been taken away is recognition of the relationship. Nebraska has a right to define its public policy, and that's what it's done."
The court has not indicated when it may rule on the case. Both sides say it has the potential of reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.