Gay Couple Wins Right to Marry in Chihuahua

A gay couple in Chihuahua, Mexico, who first filed for a marriage license in April can legally wed after the state declined to file a challenge to the petition, a local judge ruled Monday, according to Spanish-language news site El Pueblo.

Tony and Tomas tried to marry April 30 but were denied a license by the Civil Registry of the State of Chihuahua. On August 22, a district judge ruled that the state must provide marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and gave government officials ten days to file a formal objection to the order. The government made no such move, so Tuesday, the state legal adviser confirmed to press outlets that the couple can be married.

The decision was fueled by a ruling from Mexico's Supreme Court last year, which struck down a ban on marriage equality in the southern state of Oaxaca, citing American legal precedent. In 2010 the nation's capital, Mexico City, began serving gay and lesbian couples with marriage licenses. Later that year the nation's Supreme Court ruled that such marriages must be recognized in every other jurisdiction.