OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) – Saying the state constitution broadly guarantees equality, a judge struck down Washington’s ban on same-sex marriage and set the stage for an appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Richard Hicks said the guarantees of equality are violated by the state’s 1998 Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman and bars same-sex civil marriage.

He acknowledged the Legislature’s intent was clear when it banned same-sex marriage. But Washington’s constitution, which offers broader protection of individual liberties than the federal Constitution, always trumps statute law, he said.

The state “must take care to treat all its citizens in an equal way,” he said.

In the opinion, Hicks also scoffed at the view that marriage is meant just for male-female couples to have babies and raise children together.

The case, along with a similar ruling in King County, will be appealed to the state Supreme Court.

Jeff Kemp, a former Seattle Seahawks football star who heads a pro-traditional marriage group called Families Northwest, said he was disappointed by the ruling.

“What is new here is the judge saying … the morality of one class of people somehow trumps what society and an overwhelming bipartisan majority of elected officials have determined to be the definition of marriage in Washington,” he said in a statement.

He said the two rulings all but guarantee a move to amend the state constitution.

The American Civil Liberties Union brought the Thurston County case on behalf of 11 gay and lesbian couples from around the state, who praised the ruling.

“I think the tide is turning,” said Jeff Kingsbury, a community leader and artistic director of a theater company in Olympia. He and his partner, Alan Fuller, have been together for 12 years.

“Washington could have a significant place in leading the way to a new and more tolerant direction,” he added.

Attorneys said they expect Hicks to suspend the effect of his ruling during the appeal, meaning that there would be no loophole for same-sex couples to get licenses and marry during that time.

Hicks’ decision came just a month after a King County judge ruled in favor of eight same-sex couples. The cases will likely be consolidated before the state Supreme Court.

The challenges were raised after Massachusetts, in May, became the first state in the nation to allow same-sex marriages.