SANTA ANA, Calif. -- A same-sex
marriage lawsuit that created a public rift between President Barack Obama and
his gay supporters was dismissed Monday on a technicality.
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter ruled the case - the first of several
pending challenges to the federal Defense of Marriage Act - must be refiled in
federal court.
Carter said the suit had been improperly filed in state court before it was
transferred to his jurisdiction. As a result, the judge said, he would not
entertain arguments on its merits, at least not yet.
"There is no point for us to go down the line of decision-making and
waste time," he said during the hearing in Santa Ana.
