First gay couple legally marries in the State of Iowa

Two men were married outside a minister's home in the state's first legal same-sex wedding Friday morning, less than 24 hours after a judge threw out Iowa's ban on gay marriage.

It was narrow window of opportunity.

At 11 a.m., after about 20 gay couples had applied for marriage licenses, the Polk County Recorder announced that she had been instructed to stop accepting their applications.

Recorder Julie Haggerty said the instruction came from the county attorney's office after Judge Robert Hanson, the same judge who threw out the ban on Thursday, verbally issued a stay of his ruling at the county's request. Hanson was expected to file the written ruling later in the day, his clerk said.

Haggerty said she is not permitted to accept any more marriage applications from gay couples until the Iowa Supreme Court rules on the county's appeal.