TEN SAME-SEX COUPLES LOSE NEW YORK CASE: From the Associated Press

Ten same-sex couples, including the mayor of Nyack and his partner, have lost the lawsuit they filed when New York State denied them marriage licenses. Acting state Supreme Court Justice Alfred Weiner ruled Thursday in New City that the state's domestic relations law limited marriage licenses to heterosexual couples, the plaintiffs' lawyer, Norman Siegel, said Friday.

The couples, known as the "Nyack 10," had claimed that the law did not specifically ban same-sex couples. But the judge said the Legislature's use of phrases such as "husband and wife" and "bride and groom" made its intentions clear.

The couples had also claimed that the denial of marriage licenses was unconstitutional discrimination by sexual orientation, but Weiner dismissed that as well.

"It's rather appalling to see in black and white that discrimination is overtly unconstitutional in the state Constitution unless it happens to be discrimination based on your sexual orientation," said plaintiff Toni Bonde. Siegel said he would appeal the ruling.

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