Utah Defends Same-Sex Marriage Ban

Utah state attorneys tell a federal appeals court that the state's same-sex marriage ban should be upheld because such matters are best left to states to resolve.

The state's brief filed late Friday is the last scheduled filing before the Denver-based 10th Circuit Court of Appeals holds a hearing on the case April 10.

The state's brief comes in response to arguments made last month by attorneys for three same-sex couples who said the ban has "cemented discrimination" in the state against gays and their children.

The appeals court must decide if it agrees with a federal judge in Utah who in mid-December overturned the ban, saying it violates gay and lesbian couples' rights to due process and equal protection under the 14th Amendment.