DOVER, Del. -- A divided Delaware state Senate voted Tuesday to make its state the 11th in the nation to allow same-sex marriage, after hearing hours of passionate testimony from supporters and opponents.

The Senate's 12-9 vote sends the bill to Democratic Gov. Jack Markell, who supports the measure and planned to sign it later in the day. It would go into effect July 1.

"I think this is the right thing for Delaware," the governor said after the vote, while posing for pictures with supporters outside his legislative office. "It took an incredible team effort."

Gay rights activists and their supporters in the chamber erupted in cheers and applause following the Senate vote.

Delaware's same-sex marriage bill was introduced in the Democrat-controlled legislature last month, barely a year after the state began recognizing same-sex civil unions. The bill won passage two weeks ago in the state House on a 23-18 vote.

While it doesn't give same-sex couples any more rights or benefits under Delaware law than those they have in civil unions, supporters argued same-sex couples deserve the dignity and respect of married couples. They also noted that if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the Defense of Marriage Act, which bars married gay couples from receiving federal benefits, civil unions would not provide protections or tax benefits under federal law to same-sex couples in Delaware.

Opponents, including scores of conservative religious leaders from across the state, argued same-sex marriage redefines and destroys a centuries-old institution that is a building block of society.

Under the bill, no new civil unions will be performed in Delaware after July 1, and existing civil unions will be converted to marriages over the next year. The legislation also states that same-sex unions established in other states will be treated the same as marriages under Delaware law.

The bill does not force clerics to perform same-sex marriages that conflict with their religious beliefs. But under an existing Delaware law banning discrimination based on sexual orientation, business owners who refuse to provide marriage-related services to same-sex couples for reasons of conscience could be subject to discrimination claims.

Delaware joins neighboring Maryland and the nearby District of Columbia as jurisdictions that have approved gay marriage. Last week, Rhode Island became the 10th state to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed, with independent Gov. Lincoln Chafee signing the bill an hour after its final passage.

Minnesota appeared poised to legalize gay marriage after the Democratic speaker of the state House said Tuesday that a gay marriage bill endorsed by the governor and likely to pass in the state Senate also now has enough backing in his chamber. The House will vote on the measure Thursday, and if it passes, the Democratic-led Senate could vote on it as soon as Saturday.

This story was originally published on Tue May 7, 2013 6:19 PM EDT

Handout / Reuters

President Barack Obama announced Monday that he will designate five locations, including Patos Island Lighthouse at the San Juan National Monument in Washington, and others around the country as national monuments to protect large tracts of land and historical sites, a White House official said.

President Barack Obama signed proclamations Monday designating five locations around the country as new national monuments to protect large tracts of land and historical sites, a White House official said. 

The locations range from a 240,000-acre expanse in New Mexico's high desert and the town green in Dover, Del., to an archipelago in Washington, a historical home in Ohio and a park in Maryland. 

“These sites honor the pioneering heroes, spectacular landscapes and rich history that have shaped our extraordinary country,” said Obama. “By designating these national monuments today, we will ensure they will continue to inspire and be enjoyed by generations of Americans to come.”

Handout / Reuters

Watmough Bight on Lopez Island at the San Juan National Monument in Washington is seen.

Similar to a national park, the sites, located in Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Ohio and Washington, can be designated as national monuments directly by the president without congressional approval, under the Antiquities Act.

Conservationists and lawmakers said the new monuments are expected to promote economic growth in the local communities through tourism and outdoor recreation.

"Our state will now welcome the many economic opportunities that surround a new national monument and can help boost local businesses and create jobs," Delaware Senator Tom Carper told Reuters.

“There’s no doubt that these monuments will serve as economic engines for the local communities through tourism and outdoor recreation – supporting economic growth and creating jobs," Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said.

The president designated the First State National Monument in Delaware, which spans three historical areas: the Dover Green, the New Castle Court House complex and the Woodlawn property in Brandywine Valley. The site tells the story of the early Dutch, Swedish, Finnish and English settlement of the colony of Delaware, and it will be the state's first designation. 

The president also designated Rio Grande del Norte National Monument in New Mexico, which contains stretches of the Rio Grande Gorge and extinct volcanoes that rise fro the Taos Plateau. The area is known for its spectacular landscapes and recreational opportunities like rafting, fishing and hiking and serves as an important habitat for many birds and wildlife. 

Handout / Reuters

Minnie's Beach, Active Cove on Patos Island at the San Juan National Monument in Washington is seen.

Obama also designated the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument on Maryland's Eastern Shore that honors the escaped slave who helped lead others to freedom.

The site includes Stewart’s Canal, dug by hand by free and enslaved people between 1810 and the 1830s, and where Tubman learned important outdoor skills when she worked in the nearby timber operations with her father, the White House said. 

Rounding out the new monuments are: the Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument in Ohio, which honors the distinguished officer in the United States Army who was the third African American to graduate from West Point and the first to achieve the rank of Colonel; and the San Juan Islands National Monument in Washington state, home to a number of historic lighthouses and cultural resources and fossils dating back 12,000 years.

Obama has previously designated four places as national monuments, including the home and headquarters of the United Farm Workers of America leader César Chávez and Colorado's Chimney Rock, known for its rich history of Native American culture. 

A man opened fire at a Delaware courthouse on Monday, killing two women and wounding two others before he was fatally shot, officials said.

The shooting occurred at around 8 a.m. ET at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington, Del., when the gunman was stopped by Capitol Police at a security checkpoint inside the main lobby, Mayor Dennis Williams told NBC10 in Philadelphia. The court was not yet open.

Delaware State Police Sgt. Paul Shavack said that the two people wounded were Capitol Police officers. They were transported to Christiana Hospital in Newark, Del., with non-life threatening injuries.

Shavack said the suspect exchanged gunfire with officers in the lobby. It was not immediately known whether the suspect was killed by police or died of a self-inflicted wound.

Police said they have preliminary identification of the gunman, who was in his late 20s to early 30s, but would not yet release that information.

Shavack said investigators and search teams were canvassing the 12-story courthouse building as a precaution to protect those still inside, but they believed the area was secure.

“We believe that this is a lone gunman but we continue to operate under procedure,” Shavack told reporters outside the courthouse Monday.

Defense attorney Brian Chapman told NBCPhiladelphia.com that the building’s security personnel make it very hard to breach security.

"There are at least four or five rows of metal detectors when you go in, you put your belongings through, then you have to walk through the metal detectors,” Chapman said. “Then there are usually eight to 10 police with wands checking everyone and after that you still have to walk by a desk where capitol police sit."

Dozens of police cars, ambulances and fire trucks were on the scene, and the streets were cordoned off for several blocks around the courthouse, DelawareOnline.com reported.

Five elementary schools and one high school in the area were on lockdown Monday morning.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

Three mothers campaigning for the right to breast-feed in public say they were harassed by security guards while nursing inside a mall.

Diana Hitchens, Autumne Murray and Jessica Hitchens staged a "nurse-in" at the Hollister store at the Concord Mall in Wilmington, Del., on Saturday.

The protest was a response to an alleged incident at a mall in Houston, Texas, in which a mother claimed a Hollister manager threw her out for breast-feeding inside the store.

According to Delaware state law, women are allowed to breast-feed in any public or private location.

Read more stories at NBC10.com

The mothers carried posters which read, “Hey Hollister, my baby has a right to eat. It’s the law,” as well as “Normalize breast-feeding in public. Do you eat in public? Why shouldn’t our babies?”

“We walked through the store and the employees asked if we needed help with anything,” said Diana Hitchens of Elkton, Maryland. “We were actually nursing as we were walking through the store.”

But moments after they staged a sit-in, mall security arrived.

“Two security guards walked up to us,” said Autumne Murray of Elkton, Maryland. “They started questioning us and asking us why we were exposing ourselves and saying that we needed to leave or cover up. We got in an argument with them about it for a little bit and then they left.”

From NBCDFW.com: Battle over breastfeeding

When mall security returned, they brought along a Delaware State Trooper who was on routine patrol, according to state police.

“He was asking if we were exposing ourselves saying that the security guards said we were exposing ourselves and that we could be kicked out of the mall if we didn’t cover up,” Murray added.

Delaware State Police told NBC10 they are considering the incident a “civil matter” between the three women and the mall.

Concord Mall security and customer service employees referred NBC10 to their superiors who return to work on Monday, and asked reporters to leave the parking lot.

Delaware State Police are searching for a man accused of manufacturing methamphetamine in his mother’s house.

On Sunday morning, a woman in Felton, Del., called the police reporting a toxic substance on her property. The woman told police that she had been collecting laundry to wash when she found a rag sticking out of a cooler in her son’s bedroom. She pulled the rag from the cooler, became overwhelmed by fumes and then quickly dragged the cooler outside onto a porch, she said.

More stories from NBCPhiladelphia.com

Detectives from the Delaware State Police Kent County Drug Unit found key ingredients involved in making methamphetamine at the house, according to investigators. Teams then safely dismantled and removed the lab from the home.

Police are currently searching for the woman’s son, John Bradley, 32, who was not home when they arrived. Warrants are on file for his arrest for manufacturing methamphetamine.

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Authorities have suspended a Delaware day care's license after three employees there allegedly encouraged a pair of toddlers to fight one another.

Cell phone video taken in March appears to show two three-year-olds fighting the Hands of Our Future Daycare in Dover, Del., while three female workers cheer them on, according to Dover Police.

Several other children were roaming around in the room at the time, Delaware Online reported.

For more visit NBCPhiladelphia.com.

CBS Philadelphia reported that in the video, police say one child can be heard crying and yelling, "He’s pinching me," while a day care worker responds, "No pinching, only punching."

On Monday, police arrested Tiana Harris, 19, of Dover; Estefania Myers, 21, of Felton; and Lisa Parker, 47, of Dover. All three women face two counts each of second-degree assault and reckless endangerment as well as nine counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one count each of conspiracy.

“Clearly one of the children is crying and does not want to continue on, and he is pushed back into the fray by one of the adults,” Dover Police Captain Tim Stump told CBS.

According to Delaware Online, police said Harris and Myers were “shown and heard laughing and encouraging the altercation."

The incident came to light when a Dover police officer saw the video over the weekend during an unrelated investigation and alerted detectives.

The city business license for Hands of Our Future was suspended pending a hearing, police said.

“It’s shocking, disturbing and infuriating to watch this video that shows the two children whaling on each other,” Stump told Delaware Online. “These are our most precious cargo and to have adults responsible for caring for their well-being to have them behave as such is sickening.”

Stump added that it is unclear whether other children were involved.

Parent Cristyl Slack, who said she has known Myers since childhood, told CBS her 4-year-old daughter was at the day care on the day of the fight. She said she was angry the allegations were just coming out now, months later.

“I feel if my daughter is around anything, I should have known that day,” Slack said.

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Edith A. McFarland, shown advocating for Sunday DART bus service in 2005, was killed in a hit-and-run accident Tuesday.

A wheelchair-bound woman who was killed when she was hit by three cars Tuesday had lost her leg in a previous hit-and-run accident on the same city road in Wilmington, Del., a friend told NBC Philadelphia.

Edith McFarland, 58, was trying to get across South Market Street, a busy road near the Fairview Inn, where she had been living for the past three months, when she was struck at 6:35 p.m. on Tuesday, Delaware State Police said.

 "After the impact, McFarland was ejected from her wheelchair into the southbound lanes of South Market Street, where she was then struck by two additional vehicles," investigators said in a statement.

Police said the disabled woman was hit first by a gold truck or SUV. All three drivers fled the scene without stopping and have yet to be apprehended.

McFarland was pronounced dead at the scene in the state's first fatal accident of the year, police said.

The first hit-and-run happened 25 years ago, her friend, Robin Smith, told NBC Philadelphia. South Market Street is also known as Route 13, and McFarland's first accident happened just a few miles further down the road on Route 13, reported CBSPhilly.com.

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Edith A. McFarland was killed in a hit-and-run accident Tuesday night at the entrance to the Fairview Inn on South Market Street, also designated U.S. 13, south of Wilmington.

"To be taken off of this earth the same way she lost her leg, it’s just, it heavies my heart," Smith said.

Smith implored the drivers who hit her friend to turn themselves in.

"I think it's cruel. How can you hit somebody in a wheelchair and keep going?" she said. "I pray to God that whoever hit her, that their heart would be so heavy that they would turn themselves in and that justice would be made for her and her family."

 Sources told NBC Philadelphia that McFarland was returning from the grocery store when she was killed.

Read the full story on NBCPhiladelphia.com

"She was a good woman," McFarland's son Jeremy told NBC Philadelphia, unable to hold back tears. "We didn’t have very much anyway, but she would give anyone what she had, you know."

Police said they had interviewed witnesses and asked anyone with information to call the Delaware State Police.

Reuters contributed to this report.