Mississippi Supreme Court narrowly grants same-sex divorce
By JEFF AMY and EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A narrowly divided Mississippi Supreme Court has voted to allow a lesbian couple to seek a divorce.
The ruling Thursday was 5-4, but two justices questioned the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, suggesting that decision has no constitutional basis.
In 2013, DeSoto County Chancery Judge Mitchell Lundy Jr. ruled that the Mississippi Constitution and state law prevented him from granting a divorce to Lauren Czekala-Chatham (chik-AH'-luh CHAT'-uhm) and Dana Ann Melancon (muh-LAHN'-sahn).
The pair appealed to the state Supreme Court. Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, a Democrat, initially opposed the divorce, but asked the court to allow it after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling.