The recent US Supreme Court ruling to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) has been front and center in the national media. On Monday, local groups on both sides of the debate rallied at the Allen County Courthouse passionate about this decision. Locally, it has many people wondering what it means for Hoosiers.
While the national impact of this ruling is significant, same sex couples in Indiana will see little to no impact right away. The State of Indiana passed a statute defining marriage as between one man and one woman. The US Supreme Court ruling recognizes that states with this (or similar) definition of marriage may maintain those laws. Thus, unless Indiana changes its law, equal treatment of same sex marriages will not apply.
Will the law change? That’s hard to predict. There is currently talk of Indiana bolstering it’s current marriage status by seeking an amendment to the state constitution. Whether or not that develops remains to be seen.