Jim Obergefell thanks Justice Scalia for service
Those mourning the death of former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia Saturday were joined by Jim Obergefell, the Cincinnatian who was lead plaintiff in the 2015 same-sex marriage case in which Scalia dissented.
The case was decided in Obergefell's favor and paved the way for legalization of gay marriage across the nation.
Scalia, who died Saturday at age 79, dissented strongly.
Still, Obergefell offered condolences to Scalia's family and thanked the former justice on the day of his death.
"Thank you for your service to our country, Justice Scalia. Condolences to your family and friends," Obergefell tweeted.
Scalia's dissenting opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges was likely his most memorable intersection with the Queen City during his Supreme Court term.
"The substance of today’s decree is not of immense personal importance to me," Scalia wrote in the dissent. "The law can recognize as marriage whatever sexual attachments and living arrangements it wishes, and can accord them favorable civil consequences, from tax treatment to rights of inheritance.
"Those civil consequences—and the public approval that conferring the name of marriage evidences—can perhaps have adverse social effects, but no more adverse than the effects of many other controversial laws. So it is not of special importance to me what the law says about marriage. It is of overwhelming importance, however, who it is that rules me. Today’s decree says that my Ruler, and the Ruler of 320 million Americans coast-to-coast, is a majority of the nine lawyers on the Supreme Court. The opinion in these cases is the furthest extension in fact— and the furthest extension one can even imagine—of the Court’s claimed power to create 'liberties' that the Constitution and its Amendments neglect to mention."
Opinion: Scalia was faithful servant of law, God
Scalia was appointed to the Supreme Court by Ronald Reagan in 1986, and was influential on the modern court's conservative wing.
As Supreme Court justice, he visited Greater Cincinnati on at least two occasions.
On March 6, 2002, the University of Cincinnati hosted Scalia for an event, according to the UC website. There, he spoke and helped deliver the UC College of Law's John H. Burlingame Distinguished Lecturer award at The Phoenix in Downtown.
During his remarks, Scalia defended his role as a constitutional originalist.
Said Scalia during his remarks at UC: "Judges, lawyers and, worst of all, the American people have come to believe in the living Constitution. The problem with that approach, which favors a broad constitutional interpretation based on current realities and sensibilities, is how it undermines the role of the Constitution in guiding government.
"I'd suggest the framers who adopted the Bill of Rights didn't have such a Pollyannish attitude."
Alex Triantafilou, chairman of the Hamilton County Republican Party, recalled Saturday in a news release another Scalia visit to the Cincinnati area in the early 1990s.
"I was fortunate enough to once see Justice Scalia in the early 1990s as he visited the Cincinnati area," Triantafilou said. "He was, by far, my favorite Supreme Court justice because of his clear vision for protecting the Constitution and freedom in America. As a practicing lawyer and former judge, I am deeply saddened with this news."
Presidential hopeful and Ohio Gov. John Kasich also reacted to Scalia's death from the campaign trail, saying in a statement: "I am deeply saddened by the passing of Justice Scalia and send my prayers out for his family in this difficult time. His death is a serious loss to our nation and the Court. He was an essential, principled force for conservative thought and is a model for others to follow. His dedication to the Constitution and love for and service to our country will be deeply missed."
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