Nevada Withdraws Defense Of Gay Marriage Ban That Invoked Bigamy, Incest

The state of Nevada on Monday announced that it would no longer defend the state's ban on gay marriage.

In a motion filed with the 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals, Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said that the state's legal arguments “grounded upon equal protection and due process are no longer sustainable” in light of a recent determination by the court.

In that case, handed down earlier this month, the court found it unconstitutional to exclude jurors based on sexual orientation.

Writing for the 3-member panel, Judge Stephen Reinhardt said: “Windsor requires that when state action discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation, we must examine its actual purposes and carefully consider the resulting inequality to ensure that our most fundamental institutions neither send nor reinforce messages of stigma or second-class status. In short, Windsor requires heightened scrutiny.”

Republican Governor Brian Sandoval said that he agreed with Masto's determination.

“Based upon the advice of the attorney general's office and their interpretation of relevant case law, it has become clear that this case is no longer defensible in court,” Sandoval told the AP in an email.

The state's defense, filed in January, drew fire for including comparisons to bigamy and incest.

“The interest of the State in defining marriage in this manner is motivated by the state's desire to protect and perpetuate traditional marriage,” Masto wrote. “In establishing this criterion and others – e.g., age, consanguinity, unmarried status, etc. – the state exercises its prerogative as a State, and that exercise is entitled to respect.”

In a section titled “What marriage is not,” Masto wrote that “marriage is not between more than two people. In Nevada, bigamy is a category D felony.” and “Marriage is not between close relatives. Incest is a category A felony.”

Eight plaintiff couples challenged the state's 2002 voter-approved constitutional amendment limiting marriage to heterosexual couples. A federal judge in Reno upheld the state's ban in 2012 and plaintiffs appealed.