Court strikes down Oregon's gay marriage ban

Add Oregon to the list of states where same-sex marriage is now legal. A federal judge on Monday struck down the state's ban on gay marriage, saying that "because Oregon's marriage laws discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, the laws violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution."

Since the Supreme Court last year struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, a dozen federal courts have nixed gay marriage bans or ruled that states must recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. State courts in New Jersey, Arkansas, and New Mexico have also ruled in favor of marriage equality in the past year.

A last-minute petition to stay the ruling was denied, meaning same-sex couples may immediately wed in Oregon.

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