In 1993, as a Hawaii State Supreme Court Justice, Levinson wrote a notable opinion in the case of Baehr v. Lewin, 852 P.2d 44 (Haw. 1993), in which he ruled that the state of Hawaii needed to demonstrate a "compelling state interest" for denying marriage licenses to three same-sex couples in December 1990. He cited Article I, Section 5 of the Hawaii Constitution in stating:
No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor be denied the equal protection of the laws, nor be denied the enjoyment of the person's civil rights or be discriminated against in the exercise thereof because of race, religion, sex or ancestry.
Although the ruling gave a push to the gay-rights movement, in 1998, Hawaii's residents voted in favor of amending the state's constitution to allow the legislature "the power to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples."
Read more about this topic: Steven H. Levinson