News
2006-03-21
Same-sex marriage
fight looms in Connecticut courts
Hearing scheduled
for Tuesday in New Haven.
Gay activists are
preparing for battle in Connecticu
Gay activists are
preparing for battle in Connecticut, where they will go
to the state's superior court on Tuesday to fight for
same-sex marriage rights.
Gay and Lesbian
Advocates and Defenders, an LGBT legal advocacy group,
will argue for the plaintiffs in Kerrigan and Mock
v. Department of PublicHealth, a lawsuit filed in August 2004 on
behalf of eight Connecticut couples who sought and were
denied marriage licenses. GLAD senior staff attorney
Bennett Klein will argue that Connecticut's
constitution guarantees equality for all citizens and
that by denying gays and lesbians marriage rights, the state
is violating its own laws.
“At issue
in this case is whether gay and lesbian people in
Connecticut can be excluded from making one of the
most defining choices of a lifetime: to marry the
person they love,” Klein said.
The superior
court's decision will most likely by reviewed by an
appellate court before the case arrives at Connecticut's
state supreme court. A decision by the high court
could legalize same-sex marriage in the state.
GLAD director of
public affairs Carisa Cunningham declined to make
predictions regarding the case's outcome. “We know we
will get a fair hearing, and we feel we have a strong
case,” Cunningham told The Advocate.
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