LAS VEGAS – A district judge in Nevada has stuck a dagger in the hearts of eight gay and lesbian couples who had sued for the right to marry.

District Judge Robert C. Jones, a conservative jurist appointed by President George H.W. Bush, ruled against the couples in the case known as Sevcik v. Sandoval.

WASHINGTON – What will the U.S. Supreme Court do about Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act cases that are now before them?

Early this Friday, the nine justices of the nation’s high court are scheduled to meet behind closed doors to discuss these crucial gay-rights cases that affect millions of LGBT Americans.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- A Christian legal group on Monday sent a memorandum to marriage officials in the three states where gay marriage was legalized in last week's elections, advising them they "do not have to violate their faith or conscience by personally issuing licenses to applicants who are of the same sex."

The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF, formerly Alliance Defense Fund) a American conservative Christian nonprofit organization, sent the advisory to municipal clerks and other officials responsible for issuing marriage licenses in Maine, Maryland and Washington.

SEATTLE – Same-sex couples who want to be among the first to get married in Washington state can start the process at 12:01 am Thursday, Dec. 6, in Seattle.

A waiting line to obtain marriage licenses will open at 10 pm Wednesday, Dec. 5, outside the James Street entrance on the north place of the King County Administration Building, 500 Fourth Ave. in Seattle.