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St. Louis • A state judge overturned Missouri's constitutional ban on gay marriage Wednesday in a ruling that immediately set off a rush among some same-sex couples to apply for marriage licenses.

St. Louis Circuit Judge Rex Burlison said in a written ruling that Missouri's measure recognizing marriage only between a man and woman violates the due process and equal protection rights of the U.S. Constitution. The decision mirrored ones handed down recently in several other states.

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster immediately appealed the ruling to the state Supreme Court, saying the constitutional challenge "must be presented to and resolved" at that level. But he said that his office wouldn't seek a stay of the order, noting that the U.S. Supreme Court refused to grant stays after same-sex marriage decisions in Idaho and Alaska.

The U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act that denied a range of tax, health and veterans benefits to legally married gay couples. Gay marriage is legal in 32 states and the District of Columbia.