U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl ruled Friday that the state must comply with a ruling by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals that permits same-sex marriage.

But Skavdahl says his ruling will not take effect until next Thursday in order to allow time for the state to appeal. Skavdahl said his ruling will take effect immediately if the state decides before Thursday not to appeal.

Mead's office released a statement late Friday afternoon saying that the ruling is contrary to the governor's personal beliefs but any appeal would likely fail.

While this is not the result I and others would have hoped, I recognize people have different points of view and I hope all citizens agree, we are bound by the law. Governor Mead said.

Mead said the federal court’s order, which will come into effect no later than Thursday, October 23, 2014, at 5:00 p.m., allows same-sex couples to marry in Wyoming. The District Court suspended its order to permit the State of Wyoming to appeal its decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. The Wyoming Attorney General will file notice with the court that the State will not appeal before that date.

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