Opponents of Minnesota's Marriage Protect Amendment sometimes claim there is "no threat" to marriage in their state, but this news proves once again how wrong they are:

On Tuesday, the state Supreme Court declined to review a case brought by three same-sex couples who claiming the Minnesota Defense of Marriage Act discriminates against them and against the son of one of the pairs.

The plaintiffs, who were all legally married elsewhere, filed suit [PDF] in 2010 in state court after Hennepin County refused to issue them marriage licenses. After a trial court judge dismissed the suit, the couples, who constitute the nonprofit Marry Me Minnesota, appealed. In January, the Court of Appeals overturned the dismissal ruling.

The Supreme Court’s decision not to review the case means the matter may now proceed to trial in Hennepin County. There’s very little chance it will be resolved before next fall’s amendment vote.

News that the case will move forward is not likely to spark universal celebration among advocates of same-sex marriage, some of whom fear it could be used to fuel arguments in favor of amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage. -- MinnPost