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sixth couple was denied a marriage license Thursday, Newville said.
• One of the plaintiffs, Nancy Rosenbrahn, of Rapid City, married her longtime partner in April in Minneapolis. They and some of the other couples in the lawsuit are planning a June 7 wedding reception.
• "It's exciting, and for me it's a proud moment to be a part of changing history. And I feel the weight of that this is going to affect so many people beyond us," she said.
• The lawsuit, filed by Minneapolis attorney Josh Newville, claims three violations that are guaranteed in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: deprivation of equal protection, due process and right to travel.
• "The State will incur little to no burden in allowing same-sex couples to marry and in recognizing the lawful marriages of same-sex couples from other jurisdictions on the same terms as different-sex couples, while the hardship to Plaintiffs of being denied due process, equal protection, and privileges or immunities is severe, subjecting them to an irreparable denial of their constitutional rights," it states.
• The complaint seeks a declaration that the statute and constitutional bans are unconstitutional and asks that the defendants be prevented from enforcing the bans and be required to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and recognize gay marriages from other states. It also seeks reimbursement for lawyers and other costs.
• State Rep. Steve Hickey, a Sioux Falls pastor who believes marriage should be restricted to a man and woman, said the legal challenge has been years in the making and was inevitable.
• "Christian people ought not to point fingers at the decline in America because we've been a part of it," he said.
• "This will probably get decided by one judge. One swing judge will decide this for 300 million people."
• North Dakota voters in 2004 overwhelmingly passed a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.
• Newville said several couples from North Dakota have contacted him about possibly representing them for a legal challenge in that state, which he's seriously considering.
• "What seemed doubtful just a few weeks ago seems possible now," said Mara Morken Fogarty, a board member of the Pride Collective and Community Center, which provides resources to LGBT people in the Fargo-Moorhead area. Morken Fogarty and her partner were married last August after Minnesota legalized same-sex marriage.
• If a challenge is filed in North Dakota, it will be met with staunch opposition, said

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