PHOENIX (AP) - A federal judge is blocking Arizona from implementing a state law that eliminates domestic partner benefits for gay and lesbian state employees.

U.S. District Judge John Sedwick on Friday issued a preliminary injunction that requires the state to still make family health insurance available to gay and lesbian state employees who have established relationships that meet standards set under state administration rules.

The judge also dismissed part of a lawsuit challenging the prohibition but left another part intact, allowing the suit to continue.

The Legislature included the prohibition in a budget law enacted last September.

RIVERSIDE (AP) - Lawyers for a Republican gay rights organization will ask a judge for an injunction to halt the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy during their closing arguments in a federal trial challenging the law.

Lawyers for the Log Cabin Republicans say they will ask U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips on Friday to declare the law unconstitutional.

The case is unique in that it is not based on an individual’s complaint but rather is a broad, sweeping attack on the policy. It is the biggest legal test of the law in recent years.

The case has put the Obama administration in the awkward position of defending a policy the president wants repealed. Government attorneys have argued throughout the two-week trial that Congress should decide on the policy - not a federal judge.

They presented only the policy’s legislative history in their defense.

The Log Cabin Republicans’ witnesses included former officers discharged under the policy and other experts who presented studies of how openly gay troops do not affect unit cohesion or military readiness, as proponents of the law have argued. The group’s attorneys also submitted President Barack Obama’s remarks that the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy weakens national security.

The plaintiff’s lead lawyer, Dan Woods, argued the policy violates the rights of gay military members to free speech, due process and open association.

“Don’t ask, don’t tell” prohibits the military from asking about the sexual orientation of service members but requires discharge of those who acknowledge being gay or are discovered to be engaging in homosexual activity, even in the privacy of their own homes off base.

The group says more than 13,500 service members have been fired under the law since 1994. The 19,000-member Log Cabin Republicans include current and former military members.

Phillips is expected to issue her verdict in writing. Lawyers say she could take weeks or longer to make her decision.

Legal experts say she may hold off to see if Congress is going to repeal it.

The U.S. House voted May 27 to repeal the policy, and the Senate is expected to take up the issue this summer.

In deciding to hear the challenge, Phillips said the “possibility that action by the legislative and executive branches will moot this case is sufficiently remote.”

Woods, a Los Angeles attorney from the firm White & Case, said if Phillips rules in their favor and the government appeals, he will ask her to suspend the policy until the case is decided.

TUSTIN (AP) - A gay soldier from California says he’s been honorably discharged from the Army National Guard under the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

Lt. Dan Choi, an Iraq war veteran from Orange County, was discharged from the New York Army National Guard on Thursday. He called the move “infuriating and painful.”

Choi announced he was gay on MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” more than a year ago. He had been waiting for military officials to decide whether he would be discharged.

“Don’t ask, don’t tell” prohibits the military from asking about the sexual orientation of service members but requires discharge of those who acknowledge being gay or are discovered to be engaging in homosexual activity.

TRENTON (AP) - The New Jersey Supreme Court has declined to hear a case from six same-sex couples seeking the right to marry, saying the case needs to wind its way through the lower courts first.

Gay couples unsuccessfully sued New Jersey four years ago for the right to marry. They claim that by creating civil unions, the state has not fulfilled a court order to treat them the same as heterosexual couples seeking to marry.

The Supreme Court said Monday that it cannot consider whether the civil union law provides equal rights to gay couples until there is a trial record.

The justices were split 3-3, one vote shy of the four needed for the motion to be granted.

NEW YORK (AP) - MTV held a solid lead among 15 networks for its representation of gay characters last season, according to a report released Friday.

In its fourth annual Network Responsibility Index, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation found that of MTV’s 207.5 hours of original prime-time programming, 42 percent included content reflecting the lives of gay, bisexual and transgender people. This earned MTV the first-ever “Excellent” rating from GLAAD.

“MTV programs like ‘The Real World’ and ‘America’s Best Dance Crew’ have offered richly diverse portrayals of gay and transgender people that help Americans better understand and accept our community,” said GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios.

Among broadcast networks, the CW was on top with 35 percent, while Fox ranked a close second with 30 percent. ABC, with 26 percent, got a “Good” rating, while NBC was “Adequate” with 13 percent. CBS’ 7 percent earned that network a “Failing” grade from the report.

Scoring high on cable along with MTV were ABC Family (37 percent), TNT (34 percent), Showtime (32 percent), Lifetime (31 percent) and HBO (26 percent), which all received a “Good” rating. The report assigned a “Failing” grade to USA (4 percent), A&E (3 percent) and TBS (2 percent).

GLAAD reviewed all prime-time programming - totaling 4,787.5 hours - on the major broadcast networks between June 1, 2009 and May 31, 2010. The study also examined all original prime-time programming - 1,227.75 hours - on 10 prominent cable networks. This included dramas, comedies, unscripted fare and newsmagazines.

GLAAD noted, with approval, the parenting role played by gay couple Mitchell and Cameron on ABC’s “Modern Family,” and the story line on Fox’s “Glee” where high school student Kurt comes out as gay to his father.

“When television networks share real stories of our community, audiences begin to see the common ground that we all share,” Barrios said.

In September, GLAAD will release its annual report evaluating gay, bisexual and transgender inclusion, and other diversity, among scripted characters scheduled to appear during the 2010-11 season.