Statement of John Knight, LGBT Project Director

July 3, 2012 11:45 am

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Re: Motion to intervene in the Lazaro, et. al. v. Orr, case challenging Illinois’ ban on the freedom to marry for same sex couples in Illinois.

Late last week, two downstate County Clerks, represented by the Thomas Moore Society, filed a petition to intervene in Lazaro, et. al v. Orr, our case filed in late May challenging Illinois’ denial of the freedom to marry to same sex couples. We filed the case in coordination with a similar case brought by Lambda Legal, and the cases now have been consolidated. Today, the plaintiffs in the case agreed not to oppose a joint motion allowing the intervenors in the case. The following can be attributed to John Knight of the ACLU of Illinois:

We did not oppose the intervenors’ petition today in order to avoid extended litigation over the question of their standing to intervene. We want to ensure that our clients have the freedom to marry at the earliest possible date and are confident that a full and fair hearing will show the unconstitutionality of the ban on the freedom to marry for same-sex couples in Illinois. Today, lesbian and gay couples are a step closer to achieving that goal.

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