'Being Gay is A Choice', Says Republican Candidate Ben Carson [VIDEO]

Prospective Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson believes that being gay is a choice and cites prisons as evidence, according to a new interview with CNN.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight - and when they come out, they're gay," Ben Carson told CNN on Wednesday. "So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question."

Carson made the comments Wednesday morning to CNN's Chris Cuomo on "New Day" while discussing gay marriage.

"Why do gay people want to get married? Why do they say they want to get married? Because they want to have various rights - property rights, visitation rights," he said. "Why can't any two human beings, I don't care what their sexual orientation is, why can't they have the legal right to do those things? That does not require changing the definition of marriage."

Carson also said he believes the issue of allowing or restricting same-sex marriage should be decided on the state level, rather than by federal courts -- even as the Supreme Court prepares to take up a case this spring that could legalize gay marriage nationwide.

A majority of the medical community - including the American Psychological Association - believes "most people experience little or no sense of choice about their sexual orientation."

A study in rats shows that exposure to sex hormones in developing fetuses during a critical period in brain development has a significant effect on future sexual orientation. Studies also have shown that there's a genetic component attached to one's sexual preference.