Monroe Circuit Judge Luis Garcia declared Florida's ban on gay marriage unconstitutional Thursday afternoon. He ruled in favor of Aaron Huntsman and William Lee Jones, a same-sex couple seeking to marry -- but they will only be allowed to do so after Tuesday, July 22.
Later on Thursday afternoon, the office of Attorney General Pam Bondi filed a notice of appeal against Judge Garcia's decision.
The judge compared the gay-marriage ban to earlier laws that prevented women from voting, banned interracial marriages and imprisoned Japanese Americans during World War II.
The ruling is one more example of the changing tide of public opinion in Florida, but even Key West -- one of the most gay-friendly places in the U.S. -- wasn’t anywhere close to being at the vanguard in marriage quality rulings.
You can read about the couple and Judge Garcia's ruling, at MiamiHerald.com.
Scroll below to read the judge's ruling (click the arrow on the top left to get rid of the page-by-page view):
