SCOTUS Delays Benefits for Utah Gay Couples

More than 1,000 same-sex married couples in Utah must wait longer for state benefits after the US Supreme Court granted the state a stay on an order requiring it to recognize the marriages. The high court issued the order this afternoon, saying the stay will remain in place pending the outcome of the appeal to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Utah argued benefits should be delayed until the larger issue of the marriage ban makes its way through the courts.

The state's same-sex marriage ban was struck down in December and the couples got married before the US Supreme Court ordered a halt. In May, a different federal judge ruled Utah must grant benefits—such as child custody—to those couples, but the decision was put on hold. (More gay marriage stories.)