As of July 1, 2014, same-sex couples applying for marriage licenses in Indiana will have committed a felony, punishable by 18 months in prison and a $10,000 fine, the Alter Net website reports today (July 10, 2013).
The new crime stems from the revival of a 1997 law forbidding false information on a marriage license as a Class D felony.
It will also make it a Class B misdemeanor -- punishable by up to 180 days in a jail and a maximum fine of $1,000 -- for clergy, judges, and others to perform a same-sex marriage.
Because Indiana marriage license forms have a space for "male applicant" and "female applicant," any same-sex couple filling out the form would automatically violate the law.
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Interesting! Sure to be challenged, but the states have sovereignty in the matter of issuing licenses.
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