U.S.

Supreme Court justice performs her first same-sex wedding

/ CBS/AP

WASHINGTON -- Justice Elena Kagan has officiated for the first time at a same-sex wedding, a Maryland ceremony for her former law clerk and his husband.

Kagan presided on Sunday over the wedding of former clerk Mitchell Reich and Patrick Pearsall in the Washington suburb of Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said Monday that the same-sex ceremony was the first at which Kagan officiated.

Retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg have previously officiated at the wedding of gay and lesbian couples, including at the Supreme Court. Ginsburg most recently performed the wedding of Washington theater director Molly Smith.

The court could decide in its upcoming term whether same-sex couples nationwide have the right to marry under the Constitution.

Same-sex marriage is legal in 19 states and the District of Columbia.

A CBS News/New York Times poll taken in February showed more than half - 56 percent - of the country backs legalizing same-sex marriage.

© 2014 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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