Judge strikes down South Carolina same-sex marriage ban

CHARLESTON, SC -- A federal judge has struck down South Carolina's same-sex marriage ban, saying it's unconstitutional, CBS affiliate WLTX reports.

U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel on Wednesday ruled against the state's constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. But marriage licenses can't be immediately handed out. Gergel gave state Attorney General Alan Wilson a delay until Nov. 20.

A spokesman for Wilson says he's reviewing the ruling.

Last month, Colleen Condon and Nichols Bleckley applied for a same-sex marriage license in Charleston County.

The U.S. Supreme Court last month refused to hear an appeal of a 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision allowing same-sex marriage in Virginia. That development opened the way for same-sex marriages in other states in the 4th Circuit. South Carolina was the only state in the circuit refusing to allow such marriages.