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After Supreme Court Ruling, Wyoming Lawmakers Would Have A Hard Time Fighting Gay Marriage

The State of Wyoming

The U.S. Supreme Court made same-sex marriage legal nationwide Friday.

That decision means lawmakers in states like Wyoming would have a much harder time challenging the practice.

Same-sex marriage became legal in Wyoming back in October, when the 10th Circuit Court ruled it had no other choice.

North Carolina was also forced to legalize same-sex marriage by a Federal Court decision. Recently it passed a law allowing state court officials to refuse to officiate a same sex marriage if they have a sincerely held religious objection.

University of Wyoming law professor Stephen Feldman says that, after the Supreme Court ruling, a law like North Carolina's is unlikely to survive a legal challenge.

“I don’t think those laws can pass constitutional muster now,” Feldman says. “If there was any chance before I think it has been eliminated.”

A religious freedom bill was introduced into the Wyoming legislature this year that might have allowed business owners to turn away gay and lesbian customers on the basis of religious belief, but it was voted down.

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