Gay marriage ban's unexpected side effect: Ohio's new constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages is already having an effect on straight couples: it prohibits them from filing domestic violence charges. In a case where a man beat up his live-in girlfriend over a pack of cigarettes, what could've been a felony assault charge under the state's 25-year-old domestic violence law was reduced to a misdemeanor assault charge. The difference? The felony charge comes with a maximum 18 month jail sentence, compared to a six month maximum sentence for the misdemeanor.