052604P.pdf   07/14/2006  Citizens for Equal Protection  v.  John Bruning
   U.S. Court of Appeals Case No:  05-2604
   District of Nebraska   
   [PUBLISHED] [Loken, Author, with Bowman and Smith, Circuit Judges]
   Civil case- Constitutional law. The district court erred in holding
   unconstitutional Nebraska's constitutional amendment (Article 1, Sec. 29
   of the Nebraska Constitution) barring same-sex marriage; district court
   did not err in finding the plaintiffs had standing to bring the challenge and
   that the case presented a justiciable case or controversy; under a rational-
   basis standard of review, the amendment did not violate the Equal
   Protection Clause as the amendment is rationally related to the
   government interest in steering procreation into marriage; further, this
   rational basis negates any suspicion that the supporters of the amendment
   were motivated solely by the desire to punish homosexuals and lesbians; 
   district court also erred in finding the amendment was an unconstitutional
   Bill of Attainder as the bar on same-sex marriage is not a punishment in
   the historical bill of attainder sense; the district court also erred in 
   finding the amendment violated plaintiffs' First Amendment rights to
   associational freedom and to petition the government for redress of
   grievances.