Marriage equality is officially a reality in Florida – the first same-sex couples have legally tied the knot.
At about 1 p.m. EST Jan. 5, Miami-Dade District Judge Sarah Zabel married Todd and Jeff Delmay, plus Catherina Pareto and Karla Arguello. Both couples are plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed in January of 2014 by six same-sex couples in South Florida and the Equality Florida Institute, fighting for marriage equality.
The weddings happened just a couple of hours after Zabel lifted the county’s stay on same-sex marriage licenses, in response to a Dec. 22 motion by Miami Dade Clerk Harvey Ruvin requesting the 11th judicial circuit court clarify and expedite the details of the stay’s expiration.
Ruvin is the defendant in the lawsuit.
Federal Judge Robert Hinkle issued an order Jan. 1 clarifying that his August ruling that Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional does apply to all Florida counties when his stay expires end of day Jan. 5. Most clerks will begin issuing marriage license Jan. 6.
Zabel’s ruling was very quick – the hearing started at 11 a.m. and the ruling was issued by 11:05 a.m. Jan. 5.
