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Texas Federal Judge, Orlando Garcia said he was complying with the U.S. Constitution when he struck down the state’s  ban on same-sex marriage today. He decided that Texas’ amendment to the state constitution that defines marriage as only between one man and one woman demeans gay couples their dignity “for no legitimate reason.”

“The Court holds that Texas’ prohibition on same-sex marriage conflicts with the United States Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection and due process,” Garcia said. “Accordingly, the Court finds these laws are unconstitutional and hereby grants a preliminary injunction enjoining Defendants from enforcing Texas’ bans on same-sex marriage.”

Said Garcia, who was nominated to the federal bench by President Bill Clinton in 1994. “Without a rational relation to a legitimate governmental purpose, state-imposed inequality can find no refuge in our United States Constitution.”

The decision will not have an immediate effect. The judge issued a stay on his decision pending as it is likely to be appealed by the state’s lawyers. The appeal would be heard by Fifth Circuit court, in New Orleans, which is known as one of the country’s s most conservative appeals panels.

Under federal court rules, a judge may suspend a law if he or she believes the plaintiffs have a strong case and will suffer if the law is enforced.

Republican Gov. Rick Perry was not happy about the decision. “Texans spoke loud and clear by overwhelmingly voting to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman in our Constitution, and it is not the role of the federal government to overturn the will of our citizens,” he said.

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Carrie Stone