Utah's Third District Court Judge Andrew Stone has called Utah's Attorney General Sean Reyes and two Utah Health Department officials to appear in court on June 16, 2014 to:
show why they should not be held in contempt for their willful disregard and refusal to obey the Decree of Step-Parent Adoption.
From The
New Civil Rights Movement:
Judge Stone issued the order in the case of Kimberly and Amber Leary, (photo below) who are one of the 1300 couples married during the short time same-sex marriages were legal in Utah. The Leary’s not only married in that window, Kimberly filed to adopt their 18-month-old daughter, who is Amber’s natural child.
To make sure families with adopted children are secure, Utah law is clear that after an adoption becomes final, no one can challenge it for any reason under any circumstances. The court offered the attorney general the opportunity to object to Kimberly Leary’s adoption, but he declined.
Judge Stone finalized Kimberly Leary’s adoption March 25, but now the health department refuses to add Kimberly’s name to the birth certificate, on the advice of the attorney general. Instead, Attorney General Reyes is doing what the law forbids – challenging a finalized adoption.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports Attorney General Reyes’ response to the summons was to beg the Utah Supreme Court a second time for an emergency order that would halt all adoptions until the high court rules on whether the marriages of the adopting parents are legal. The attorney general made the same request last month, but the court did not respond.
I first wrote about some these issues going on in Utah (including the adoption issues) in the wake of the marriage equality ruling there and the many couples who had gotten married prior to the SCOTUS issuing the stay (pending appeal)
here. Apparently, many of those issues are ongoing and have not been resolved. It's getting interesting.
You can also read more about this issue and what is happening in Utah in this Salt Lake Tribune article.
UPDATE From Arkansas: The Arkansas Supreme Court has issued a stay on Judge Piazza's ruling regarding marriage equality in that state pending appeal. So, no more same sex marriages in Arkansas for now.
2:58 PM PT: The Arkansas Times reports on the stay and status of marriage equality in Arkansas:
http://www.arktimes.com/...