RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Attorney General Roy Cooper isn’t changing how his office is handling litigation challenging North Carolina’s gay marriage prohibition now that a federal judge has struck down Virginia’s ban.
A spokeswoman for Cooper said Friday the Attorney General’s Office is reviewing the ruling late Thursday that found Virginia’s voter-approved prohibition on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. Noelle Talley said she didn’t expect any changes from Cooper’s office since appeals courts haven’t yet considered the case.
Cooper says he supports marriage equality but wouldn’t let those views stop his professional obligation to defend the state in a separate federal lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s voter-approved constitutional amendment in 2012.
New Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced last month he would seek to overturn his state’s ban. The federal judge’s ruling was stayed pending appeals.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.