BOSTON – The U.S. Justice Department waited until the last minute to appeal two cases in Massachusetts in which the federal judge had declared parts of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) to be unconstitutional.

Legal experts had anticipated the move, however.

On July 8, U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Tauro ruled in the cases of Gill v. Office of Personnel Management and Massachusetts v. Department of Health and Human Services that Section 3 of DOMA violated the U.S. Constitution and cited various reasons.

RIVERSIDE -- U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips today issued an injunction barring enforcement of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) law and ordered the Department of Defense to halt investigations and discharges pursuant to the law.

"This order from Judge Phillips is another historic and courageous step in the right direction, a step that Congress has been noticeably slow in taking," said Alexander Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United and the sole named veteran plaintiff in the case along with the Log Cabin Republicans.

FOREST GROVE, Ore. -- Student leaders at Pacific University in Forest Grove are planning a "love chalk" rally after hateful graffiti was discovered on two campus locations early Friday morning.

Several students and staff discovered the chalked messages near the entrance to the campus library and the north side of Marsh Hall. The messages included slurs against women, Muslims, and members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered community.

"I'm not going to get into it, but it did constitute hate speech," Pacific University spokesman Joe Lang said.

MARYVILLE, Tenn. -- A seeming act of hate has been followed by an outpouring of love that has overwhelmed an area family.

“Words don't even seem adequate,” Carol Stutte said. “I want to give each and every person a hug. This love and support (we've received) is going to overshadow a few people's hate.”

Carol Stutte and her partner, Laura Stutte, were recently victims of arson. The Vonore home was a complete loss — the only thing left standing was a detached garage with the word “queers” spray painted on the side.