News
Youngstown Municipal Judge puts all marriages on hold
On the day of the Supreme Court's landmark decision that legalizes same sex marriage, Youngstown Municipal Court Judge Robert Milich is hitting the pause button on all marriages in his courtroom.
Friday, June 26th 2015, 10:44 PM EDT
Updated:
On the day of the Supreme Court's landmark decision that legalizes same sex marriage, Youngstown Municipal Court Judge Robert Milich is hitting the pause button on all marriages in his courtroom.
"I think as a judge, anytime, I have a right to recuse myself from an issue and I have the time to research it and determine what is the best position," said Milich.
He says he needs time to review the supreme court opinion and research how to proceed.
He doesn't know how long it will take to get the information he needs.
"This is not my personal opinion here, I have a duty under the law to follow the law and that's what we need to determine what the law requires me to do," said Milich.
Local attorney Dave Betras says Milich is within his rights to take that time.
"He can't say I'm not going to perform gay marriages, he would be violating the law in my opinion so he has to either perform all marriages or perform non," said Betras.
"If judges have a duty in Ohio to perform marriages as defined then there's no question but, that hasn't been clarified whether judges have a duty or the option to do it," said Milich.