New Marriage Map Based on US Supreme Court Actions Today

Today the US Supreme Court declined to hear 7 same-sex marriage cases which have worked their way up through lower and appellate Federal courts.  Each of these 7 cases ruled bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional, but each case currently had a stay on allowing same-sex couples to get marriage licenses.

With the US Supreme Court declining to hear these 7 cases, the appellate decision stands, and the stays go away.  Thus, today same-sex marriage should be legal in VA, OK, UT, IN, and WI where appellate decisions have already been made regarding those states' bans.  Other states will also likely be affected since they are in the appellate court jurisdictions governed by these rulings (NC, SC, WV, KS, CO, and WY).  

Appellate courts that are expected to soon release their decisions soon that would affect:

6th Circuit:  KY, OH, TN, and MI

9th Circuit:  NV, ID, AZ, MT, and AK

With today's five new states, 51% of Americans live in states where same-sex couples will be able to legally wed.  If marriage equality spreads to the 6 other states (WY, KS, CO, NC, SC, and WV), 58% of Americans will live in a state where same-sex couples can marry.  

Note on the Sept. 10 map of ruling below:

There have now been two Federal court decisions in Louisiana:  one upheld the state's ban on same-sex marriage; the other ruled it unconstitutional.  Lower Federal rulings in the 5th (TX, LA and MS) and 11th (GA, AL, and FL) are still waiting to be reviewed by the appellate courts for those circuits.

A Good Ol' Fashioned Sodomy Law

By 2003 most states had repealed their laws against consensual sodomy.  Depending on the old statute, consensual sodomy is oral sex and/or anal sex.  In 2003, nevertheless 13 hardcore states were still policing America's bedrooms.  In that year, however, the US Supreme Court reversed its infamous 1986 Bowers v. Hardwick decision which upheld state sodomy laws without ever discussing that yes, even heterosexuals get blow jobs.  In 2003, however, the US Supreme Court decided it was the 21st century and that it was time to get the government out of the sex lives of consenting adults.

So, that was a full DECADE ago, yet the Baton Rouge police were still charging people with consensual sodomy.  The local prosecutors of course dropped the charges, but Louisiana still has its unconstitutional law on the books.  A Baton Rouge legislator tried to get the archaic law repealed, but after heavy lobbying by the Christian Louisiana Family Forum, the Louisiana House voted Tuesday to KEEP the law on the books.

Louisiana is a strange state.  Home to Mardi Gras and Southern Decadence, Louisiana's conservative voters re-elected Senator David Vitter (R) after it came out he hired prostitutes to allegedly dress him in diapers as part of elaborate sexual fantasies.  Rest assured though.  Thanks to the good people at the Christian Louisiana Family Forum, visitors and citizens alike are protected from the scourges of consensual, adult oral and anal sex by the mere continuing presence of an unenforceable and unconstitutional sodomy law still on the books.

Updated Marriage Map

After the rush of court rulings in the first three months of 2014, April has been relatively a slow news period. The new Federal court rulings on same-sex marriage have created even greater complexity.  Judges in Tennessee and Indiana have ruled those states must recognize civil marriages performed out-of-state...but only for the plaintiffs in the lawsuits involving those cases.  So, this means Indiana must recognize the marriage of a lesbian couple in Evansville where one of the spouses is dying.  In Tennessee the judge ordered the state to recognize the three couples suing the state for recognition of their marriages.

Today an Ohio judge ordered that state to recognize marriages legally performed out-of-state.  He will decide tomorrow whether to stay his decision or not.

As for the number of states with and without a lawsuit seeking recognition of same-sex marriage, it is a challenge knowing which states have such lawsuits.  Lambda Legal put out a press release that to expect a lawsuit in Georgia this week, but there is no news there yet.  So stay tuned.

Updated: Religious Freedom Laws

Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant (R) today signed into law the Mississippi Religious Freedom Restoration Act which allows Mississippians to sue or use as a legal defense the claim that any government policy, law, regulation, or ordinance places a burden on their free exercise of religion.  It also adds "In God We Trust" to the state seal.  The new law does not, however, allow employees to sue their employer by claiming the employer infringes on the employees' religious practices.

As I noted in my earlier post, at least 18 states (16 plus now KY and MS) already have these laws on the books.  A study by Wayne State law professor Christopher Lund also notes that these laws rarely lead to the successful defense of discriminatory acts.  For example, it is difficult to claim your deeply conservative Christian values force you to deny a wedding cake to a lesbian couple when you are willing to make cakes celebrating a Pagan solstice party, divorce, new grant to study cloning, etc. as recently was the case in Oregon.  Apparently to use these laws as a legal defense you would have to show you consistently apply your religious values in your dealings with customers.  Unfortunately, these laws also put the government in the position of differentiating consistent theological principles from discrimination seeking to hide behind religion.  Ironically, these 'religious freedom restoration' laws bring the courts into defining religion.

What is perhaps the true aim of these recent legislative attempts and new statutes is to make a political statement.  This isn't a new phenomenon.  Former Confederate states added the Confederate flag to their state flags to make a statement.  Mississippi amended its state flag in 1894, and in 2001 state residents voted down a proposal to remove the Confederate battle flag widely associated nationally with racists and rednecks.  Similarly, the Catholic organization Knights of Columbus spearheaded the addition in 1954 of the words "under God" into the US Pledge of Allegiance -a previously thoroughly secular pledge.  Symbols matter and are often appropriated by political agendas by groups across the political spectrum.  Take for example the recent debacle in South Carolina where a little girl's suggestion that the state adopt the wooly mammoth as the state fossil unleashed various amendments pushing a Creationist agenda.

These recent religious freedom laws underscore a symbolic resistance to advances in gay rights and a growing pushback to a politicized conservative Christianity.  Yet, as an observer from the South, it is interesting to note the massive media attention and pushback that states like Kansas and Arizona received over their religious freedom bills.  In Kentucky in 2013 and now in Mississippi in 2014 you don't see anything close to the pushback.  Perhaps the relative silence when the KY and MS legislatures beat their Bibles reflects a national attitude that much of the South is like a Confederate reservation where people can continue to live with 19th century values?  I've noticed when there is an anti-gay incident or attack in New York or another urban area, many commentators react against the perpetrators. When a similar anti-gay incident happens in the South, many commentators lash out at the entire state or the South as a whole.  Similarly, I see a number of my fellow Southerners view the diverse populations of cities and urban suburbs where the vast majority of Americans live as not the "real Americans" and erroneously paint Democrats and Democratic-voting areas as "welfare queens" and "takers".  In fact, data shows that most of America's economic production comes from its cities and urban states that in fact tend to vote Democratic.  Thus, the older, poorer, more rural red state areas are generally the "takers" who receive far more in Federal benefits than they pay in via taxes.  

My point here is that laws like the religious freedom bills are more about political theater than policy.  They enhance stereotypes that are not universal in these states, and they highlight the differential treatment and attention given to some states by the national media and social networks.  The Culture Wars continue and while same-sex marriage sweeps the country MS' conservatives can now proudly point to the "In God We Trust" on their state seal.  

Same-sex Marriage Lawsuits: The Holdouts

17 states now have same-sex civil marriages.  The Federal government recognizes legal same-sex marriages regardless of in which state a couple live.

In all but 9 of the other states, there are now active lawsuits seeking the state benefits of marriage and the ability to marry in these states.  The 9 holdout states listed in order of 2013 estimated populations are:

• Ohio, 11.6 million*
• Georgia, 9.9 million
• Mississippi, 3 million
• Kansas, 2.9 million*
• Nebraska, 1.9 million*
• Montana, 1 million*
• South Dakota, 0.8 million
• Alaska, 0.7 million*
• North Dakota, 0.7 million

Those states with an asterisk ("*") do not currently have lawsuits directly seeking the legalization of same-sex marriage, but they do have pending lawsuits involving related issues such as listing spouses on death certificates, listing step-parents on birth certificates, recognition under workplace law, foster parenting, etc.  These related lawsuits could impact marriage legalization overall.

So, the real holdouts are the couples in Georgia, Mississippi, and the Dakotas who have yet to file suit.

UPDATE: Marriage Map

This week there have been a number of changes affecting civil marriage laws in the United States.  So, it is time for another map update:

a. Yet another Federal judge -the 6th I think- has ruled that a state's ban on offering civil marriage and its benefits and responsibilities to same-sex couples violates the US Constitution.  This week a judge in Texas ruled that the Texas ban was unconstitutional.  The ruling has a stay on it while the case can be appealed by the state government.

b. In Kentucky another Federal judge today lifted his stay on an earlier ruling that the Bluegrass State must recognize marriages legally performed in other states.  The state's Democratic Attorney General has asked for a 90 day stay so that the state can decide to either appeal or prepare.  For KY's couples married out of state, confusion abounds about how to complete their taxes.  Currently they can file jointly their Federal returns as married but must submit state returns separately as single.  No word yet on how today's decision will affect tax filings.

c. The increasingly legal complexities are making my little map also more complex.  I've now added Ohio to the states recognizing out-of-state marriages because the Federal court ruling there orders the state to recognize such marriages on death certificates.  This ruling, however, if on appeal too.

And Florida Joins the Same-sex Marriage Fight

Yesterday Equality Florida, that state's leading LGBT advocacy group, filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn Florida's ban on same-sex marriage and legalize same-sex marriage in America's 4th most populous state. This means:

• 21 states with active lawsuits directly seeking to legalize same-sex marriage
• 4 states with active lawsuits related to same-sex marriage
• 17 states + DC where legal same-sex marriages are on-going and uncontested
• 1 state trying to actively ban same-sex marriage by amending its state constitution (Indiana)

It is difficult to categorize some cases as seeking to legalize marriage or only related.  In the four states with active lawsuits related to same-sex marriage, two involve couples being able to file joint state tax returns.  In Kansas a lawsuit is seeking the right of same-sex couples married in other states to file jointly on their state tax returns.  Married couples throughout the US can now file jointly on their Federal taxes.  Next door in Missouri, the governor issued a regulation allowing married same-sex couples to file jointly on their state taxes.  An anti-gay group is now suing to stop joint state tax returns in Missouri.

Wisconsin has a domestic partnership law that gives same-sex couples 44 of the 200+ state benefits of marriage.  An anti-gay group sued claiming this law runs afoul of that state's ban on same-sex marriages.  The case is proceeding there over the partnership law and not marriage.

Similarly, a Montana lawsuit is seeking all the benefits of equal civil marriage for same-sex couples but not actual marriage.

UPDATE: Same-Sex Marriage in the USA

"Oklahomo...where marriage comes sweeping down the plain..."  OK, that lyric was just too good to pass up.

Yes indeed, a Federal judge in Oklahoma this week ruled that Oklahoma's state constitutional amendment reserving marriage as a special right for opposite-sex couples violates the US constitution.  Judge Kern overturned the ban, but stayed the ruling from going into effect while Oklahoma appeals the decision.  In other words, Kern's decision means civil marriage for both same-sex and opposite-sex couples is now the law in Oklahoma, but in real terms no actual same-sex marriage licenses can be issued until a higher court rules.

This case has an unusual twist.  It was originally filed a decade ago in 2004 but was revived after the US Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Windsor, the case that overturned the part of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act barring Federal recognition of same-sex marriages legally performed in some states.

Kern's decision in OK and Judge Shelby's decision in UT both will be heard by the 10th Circuit of the Federal Appeals Court which hears cases from UT, OK, CO, NM, WY, and KS.

The Four Corners: Gay, Married and Confused in 2014!

Imagine going to the beautiful Four Corners where the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet.  This quirk of state boundary lines creates the only place where 4 states meet at one point.  This spot also underscores the growing complexity of being gay and married in 2014 America:

Let's say you are gay and married:

So let's start with our foot in New Mexico.  Good news!  New Mexico recognizes your marriage.  You and your spouse can file state taxes jointly, have your names changed on state forms easily, adopt together, be recognized as the legal parent of your step-children, not have to testify in court against your spouse, apply for immigration for your non-citizen spouse, be granted a divorce, have inheritance rights, and so on and so on. You and the mister/missus and kids get the whole treasure box of 1000+ Federal benefits plus the dozens/hundreds of state ones.

But wait!  If you're a member of the Navajo Nation, there is a complication.  New Mexico recognizes your marriage, but the Navajo Nation does not for purposes of tribal benefits.  The Navajo Nation spans parts of New Mexico and Arizona.

Next let's shift our foot over into Arizona.  Alas, no marriage for you!  Arizona's constitution specifically bans same-sex marriages and their recognition.

But wait!  After the 2013 US Supreme Court ruling regarding DOMA (the Defense of Marriage Act), the Federal government does recognize your marriage if you got married someplace outside of Arizona.  You can at least file your Federal taxes jointly.  Arizona though will still require you file your state taxes separately and has created a new form to be used by married couples...who aren't married in Arizona but are married in the USA.  Headache?  Perhaps the pending lawsuit to overturn Arizona's ban on marriage will clear things up.

Next let our foot scoot over to neighboring Utah.  Things are even more complicated here.  Two-thirds of deeply conservative Utah's voters approved an amendment to the state's constitution stomping out the specter of same-sex marriage.  Alas, a Federal judge ruled in December 2013 that this state ban violated the US Constitution based on the DOMA ruling.  Hundreds of couples scurried to marry.  The state sought a stop to the marriages while it appealed the ruling.  The original judge said no.  The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said no too.  Finally, the US Supreme Court in January stopped the Utah wedding bells until the case gets settled.

So, what if you married in Utah in December?  Are you still married?  Will the state recognize you as married while the appeals process goes on?  Who knows?!

It gets even more complicated.  After the DOMA ruling, the Federal Department of Defense began granting married same-sex couples the same benefits it provides other married couples.  So, if you're a soldier and got hitched recently in New Mexico, no problem!  But, the Department of Defense is stumped too whether these recent Utah marriages are legal or not.  So it isn't sure it will grant your family military benefits if you got married in December in Utah.

Add to this situation that Utah's state government hasn't decided either how to handle state taxes for same-sex couples married in Utah...or married in another state too.  Better seek an accountant this year!

Whew!  Let's end our journey over in Colorado, the land of Rocky Mountain Highs...cough cough.  Yes, recreational marijuana is now legal in Colorado but not same-sex marriages.  On the other hand, the state does offer civil unions along with its tasty brownies and ski slopes.  If you get a civil union, you get most of the state same benefits to civil marriage except the name.  Even opposite-sex couples can get a civil union in Colorado.  Plus, the state will recognize your civil union if performed in another state.

But wait!  You're married; not in a civil union. Now things get tricky.  Colorado's legislation makes it clear that a civil union is not a marriage.  So you'll need to get a civil union to go with your marriage.  Are you a bigamist if you have a civil union and marriage with the same person?  Consider for a moment that North Dakota's Attorney General recently ruled that a ND man married to another man who lives in another state can marry a woman in North Dakota without getting divorced first from his first marriage to his husband.

But back to Colorado.  A legislator just filed a bill that will allow married same-sex couples to file their state taxes jointly.  If, however, you only have a civil union then you will still have to file separate state tax forms.

On the good side, this Colorado situation is so new that I bet there is not a single wedding etiquette book that says you cannot register twice:  once for your civil union ceremony and again for your marriage out-of-state.  Twice the fun.  Twice the loot.  Right?

Sigh!  Is your head spinning?  Well, better be careful.  If you fall and are knocked unconscious, in which state you land may determine if your spouse/'friend' gets to stay with you in the hospital and make medical decisions for you.

January 2014 Status of Same-sex Marriage in the US

The status of same-sex marriages and their legal recognition is rapidly changing in the United States.  Let's do a quick recap:

Federal:  In 2013 the US Supreme Court overturned the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which barred federal benefits to same-sex couples legally married in the United States or abroad.  As a result, same-sex marriage is basically legal in all 50 states ...in terms of Federal benefits.  So, if you get married in a state allowing same-sex marriages, various Federal agencies will recognize your marriage regardless of whether you live in a state with legal same-sex marriage or live in a state without same-sex marriages.  Thus, a couple in Kentucky can marry in Illinois and file their Federal taxes jointly, sign up their spouse for military benefits, be treated as a married couple for the purposes of immigration, etc.  In other words, these couples will be treated in theory no differently than any other legally married couple.

At least this is the case in theory.  Several states which ban same-sex marriages are requiring these married couples to file separately on their state taxes -even though the state forms require referencing their joint Federal tax return.  What a headache!

17 States With Legal Marriage:  In 17 states, DC, and in six tribal nations, a same-sex couple can walk into the property local office, apply for, and get a marriage license.  (See the dark blue states on the map above.

Utah:  In December 2013 a Federal judge threw out Utah's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and opened the doors for hundreds of Utah couples to marry.  Utah requested a stay on the decision until the state government could appeal the decision.  The original judge and the 10th Circuit of Appeal both turned down a stay.  Utah then appealed to the US Supreme Court which in January 2014 granted a stay until the appeal could be heard.  So now the lower court's decision is being appealed, and the status of the hundreds of newly married couples is unknown.  In the only similar situation when CA legalized and then banned same-sex marriages, the courts recognized those couples who had married when marriage was legal there. (It is legal again since 2013 in California by the way).

Ohio:  Another Federal judge in Ohio ruled in 2013 that Ohio must recognize same-sex couples who have legally married in another state on death certificates.  So, this ruling is narrow and only involves death certificates.  In this case and in Utah, both judges relied on the recent US Supreme Court's ruling on DOMA.

Oregon:  Oregon has offered same-sex couples civil unions since 2007.  It also has a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.  Now there are efforts to remove this constitutional amendment in Oregon and legalize marriage.  In the meantime the state has announced it will recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states and abroad.  A lawsuit is also challenging the state ban on marriage.

North Dakota:  In a truly bizarre legal twist, North Dakota's attorney general ruled in 2013 that a North Dakota man who had married another man in another state could marry a woman in North Dakota ...without getting a divorce!  The potential bigamist could not get a divorce from his husband in ND because neither he nor his husband lived in states recognizing same-sex marriage.  Since ND doesn't recognize his marriage, the ND Attorney General ruled he could legally marry a woman in ND.

Lawsuits in 20 States:  As of January 8, 2014, there are legal cases pending in 20 states (including UT and Oregon) seeking to have these states recognize same-sex marriages.

Other 12 States:  In 12 states same-sex marriages are banned, and I could find no current pending lawsuits challenging these bans.  In Ohio the death certificate case opens the door for a wider challenge.  Wyoming's legislature considered a civil unions bill but shot it down.  In Florida the leading LGBT organization is reportedly seeking plaintiffs to challenge that state's ban.  Missouri's governor has said the state will recognize legally married same-sex couples for tax purposes but some members of the legislature are vowing to fight this regulatory policy change.

Navajo Nation:  The Navajo Nation's reservation lands include areas of New Mexico where same-sex marriage became legal in 2013, but a 2005 law bans same-sex marriage recognition by the tribal government.  There is now a push to legalize same-sex marriages in the Navajo Nation.  If successful, the Navajos would join 8 other tribes where same-sex marriages are now legal and recognized.

...and Utah makes 18

Yesterday's ruling by Federal Judge Shelby overturning Utah's state constitutional ban limiting marriage to opposite sex couples opened the door to legal same sex marriages in Utah.  The District of Columbia and the other 16 states with legal same sex marriage vote consistently Democratic, but Utah is the first "Red State" to legalize same sex marriage.  Utah is not only a Republican stronghold but also the reddest of the red states with the highest percentage of voters voting Republican in Presidential elections recently.

The Utah ruling is also the first use the US Supreme Court's decision in the Windsor case.  Windsor is the decision which found the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional.  Judge Shelby's decision borrows heavily not only from the main Windsor decision but also conservative Justice Scalia's dissent. Scalia's dissent predicted that opening up Federal benefits nationally to married couples would spell the end of the state mini-DOMAs.

Let's look at the growing divide regionally on the issue of same sex marriage:

Percentage of States Where Same Sex Marriages Are Legal at the State Level
New England (MA, VT, NH, CT, RI, and ME):  100%
Mid-Atlantic (DC, MD, DE, NJ, PA, and NY):  83%
Midwest (IA, MN, IL, WI, MI, IN, OH):  43%
West (NM, CO, WY, MT, ID, UT, AZ, CA, HI, AK, OR, and WA):  39%

vs.

South (former Confederate states of TX, LA, AR, TN, VA, NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, and MS):  0%
Plains states (OK, KS, NE, SD, and ND):  0%
Border states (MO, KY, WV):  0%

New Mexico Becomes 17th State to Legalize Same Sex Marriage

The New Mexico Supreme Court ruled today that the state must provide marriage licenses and equal benefits to both opposite sex and same sex couples.  Previously New Mexico's marriage law was gender neutral regarding the sexes of couples and thus was silent on whether same sex marriages were legal or not.
Various county clerks in New Mexico had begun issuing marriage licenses this year.  The court decision clears the way for marriage throughout the Land of Enchantment.

What Do Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson, A Gay Teacher, Paula Deen, Martin Bashir, and An Expectant Boston Catholic Couple Have in Common?

Americans love their free speech.  Our big mouths are mouthing off about something all the time.  The Internet -an American invention after all- seems ready made to give the power of owning your own newspaper to anyone with a computer, blog, or Facebook.  I'm a case in point for sure.

This week brings another minor skirmish in America's culture wars with Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the Duck Dynasty reality TV show, inciting anger and a public backlash over expressing his personal views that black Americans were happier under segregation and that he lumps gay families in with the rape of animals (bestiality) and other sins.  While outside of the American mainstream, Robertson's views are probably not uncommon among his generation of working class whites in rural Louisiana.  Keep in mind that Paula Deen -who is 66 and from a white, working class background in rural Georgia- admitted using the "N word" in a court deposition.  She was quick to add that while this racist epithet was common in her youth in the South, it is no longer acceptable.  Under contract with the Food Network, the channel dropped Deen over the uproar from the racially charged lawsuit against her by a former employee.  Likewise, Robertson is under contract with the A&E channel.  Yesterday, his employer cut him from the show for his public remarks.

Robertson's remarks drew condemnation from the NAACP, GLAAD and others.  Others disagreed with his remarks but upheld his right to express his personal viewpoint -some out of free speech concerns and others out of support for his conservative interpretation of Christianity.  A&E's suspension in turn drew condemnation for Robertson supporters.

This post explores the issue of free speech and the workplace.

First of all, our US laws protect citizens' free speech from government interference.  Employers frequently put restrictions on employees' free speech as a condition of their employment.  These restrictions and situations arising from them come up across the political spectrum.  Cases in point:

• A Pennsylvania Catholic school recently fired a popular teacher who has worked at the school for 12 years.  Why?  He and his long term male partner sought and received a license to marry in neighboring New Jersey.  The school felt his marriage would violate Catholic teachings -and thus also his contract.
• In Massachusetts another Catholic school recently fired two heterosexual teachers.  Their wrongdoing?  They had begun dating and were expecting a child out of wedlock.  The school said their pregnancy violated their contracts.
• Paula Deen lost her cooking show, book deals, and a sizable chunk of her cooking empire after an African American employee filed a racial discrimination case and Deen admitted to having used the "N word" in the past.
• MSNBC suspended Martin Bashir for nasty remarks for public figure Sarah Palin.  He later resigned.
• MSNBC and Alec Baldwin also parted ways this year after MSNBC cancelled his show and suspended him after video went public of him shouting anti-gay slurs at paparazzi.  
• Now A&E have suspended Phil Robertson over at Duck Dynasty for violating his contract for expressing his opinions in a public GQ interview.  

The three teachers would likely either have their jobs or have good standing for wrongful termination if they worked at a public school.  They didn't:  they signed on to teach at Catholic schools that have particular morality clauses in their contracts.  Robertson's views would be mild in comparison to the viewpoints put forward on the Rush Limbaugh or other shows, but he agreed to work for A&E -on their terms.  

The point here is that when you sign a contract or agree to employment with a company, you are often agreeing to limit your free expression of your opinions and beliefs.  You might feel these seven people were wronged, but the law says they signed onto these jobs knowing the restrictions.  Be aware.

If Only White Men Voted

Check out the full story at Buzzfeed

The folks over at Buzzfeed did a series of interesting maps outlining the 2012 election results if -as was the law before 1870- only white men could vote.  My hat off to Buzzfeed for showing history in a new and intriguing way.

This led me to exploring CNN's 2012 exit polling data in this next series of maps.

Fornication Laws II

Earlier I posted a map of now defunct laws banning premarital sex or cohabitation from 1996.  Today I'm offering you a look at when the 16 states who had these laws in 1996 enacted them.  We have a big range here:  from colonial times in Massachusetts (1692) to Arizona as late as 1977.

Wet, Moist, and Dry Counties

Map courtesy of Wikipedia.

Thanks to the good volunteers over at Wikipedia, today's map of US counties shows the current status of liquor laws at the county level.  The majority of American counties (blue) are Wet counties allowing alcohol to be sold.  The red counties on the other hand are Dry counties where local laws ban alcohol sales.  The bulk of these dry counties are in Kentucky, Virginia, and Arkansas.  Finally, the yellow counties are the less well known category of Moist counties.  Moist counties represent an area with both wet and dry areas.  These usually are dry counties with a wet town or other wet business such as a golf course.

Who Sells the Booze?

As a teenager I grew up in North Carolina where all liquor had to be bought at a state-owned ABC (Alcohol Beverage Control) store.  For years I thought this was true in every state and just assumed the liquor stores on TV were also ABC stores.  Most states, however, allow privately owned but state licensed stores to sell beer, wine, and distilled spirits (liquor).  In 16 of the 18 states operating ABC stores, private stores and licensed grocery stores can sell wine and beer but not liquor.  Alabama and Utah restrict all alcoholic beverage sales -including beer, wine, and liquor- to state owned and operated stores.  Maryland has a mix of both ABC stores in some counties and private liquor stores in others.

Alcohol laws in the US are holdovers from the repeal of Prohibition in 1933.  The alcohol laws in various states vary considerably.  For instance, in North Carolina you must buy liquor at an ABC store, but you can buy beer and wine at the grocery store.  In Kentucky, liquor laws dating to the 1930s allow grocery stores to sell beer but require a separate license AND separate entrance/store to sell liquor and wine.  Recently there has been a push to allow grocery stores to sell wine in the actual grocery store -a move against which some liquor stores are lobbying.  In Utah you cannot technically order a double shot of alcohol, but you can order two single shots in two separate glasses.  And while New Hampshire requires all liquor sales go through state-owned ABC stores, the state kindly advertises its ABC stores with those giant, green, metal signs on NH interstates.

Remember the Sabbath Day

Nevermind that the Jewish Sabbath starts at sundown on Friday and ends at sundown on Saturday, most Christians view Sunday as the Sabbath.  Various state blue laws restrict commerce on Sunday -especially in the area of liquor sales.  Today's map shows the 12 states (red) that retain such laws.  In a number of these 12 states, beer and wine sales are allowed after church gets out (i.e. after 12pm or 1pm).

Curiously, Texas also requires car dealerships to close either Saturday or Sunday each weekend.

Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of God in Vain: Blasphemy Laws

As part of my Ten Commandments series, it has been rather difficult finding laws dealing with blasphemy. Unlike a number of countries such as Sweden, Saudi Arabia, etc., the United States specifically is a secular nation with a Constitution banning the government from establishing a specific religion.  Thus, it is challenging at best to have a secular law banning blasphemy.  Yet, six states in 2009 had statutes mentioning blasphemy. I was able to find a New York Times article mentioning blasphemy statutes tied to a Pennsylvania court case that eventually overturned that state's blasphemy law.  Moral of the story:  if your government doesn't have an official deity, it's hard to blaspheme against Him/Her/It/Them.

Where You Would Be Most Likely to Face the Death Penalty?

If convicted of a capital crime, where would you be most likely to face the death penalty?  The answer is an easy one:  Texas!  The Lone Star State accounts for more than a third of all people executed in the United States since 1976.  Of the 1,352 people executed since 1976, 506 of these executions have been in Texas.

In fact, half of all executions occur in just three states:  Texas, Virginia, and Oklahoma.  Of the big three executor states, though, Oklahoma -with a population of under 4 million- has the most executions per capita.  Oklahoma has 36,000 people per 1 execution compared to the much larger states of Texas and Virginia with 51,500 people per one execution and 74,400 people per one execution respectively.

A handy cartogram shows how the states with the most executions out of total executions.