Continental promo
||  News  ||
 
10/08/05-10/10/05

Massachusetts high court to review law that bars nonresident couples from marriage

Massachusetts high court to review law that bars nonresident couples from marriage

The court that paved the way for Massachusetts to become the first state to legalize same-sex marriage will now decide whether gay and lesbian couples from other states can marry there. The case is being closely watched across the country because if the supreme judicial court strikes down a 1913 law that bars out-of-state couples from marrying in Massachusetts if their marriage would be prohibited in their home state, gay and lesbian couples from across the country could go to Massachusetts to wed and demand marriage rights at home. Eight gay couples from surrounding states, all of whom were denied marriage licenses in Massachusetts, are challenging the law.

Michele Granda, a lawyer for the couples, argued before the high court Thursday that the 1913 law "sat on the shelf" unused for decades until it was "dusted off" by Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. Granda said the high court, in its historic ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, found that under the Massachusetts constitution, same-sex couples had the same right to marry as heterosexual couples. "Nothing in [that ruling] says that our officials can discriminate simply because officials in other states discriminate," Granda told the six-judge panel.

Attorneys for the state argued that the law is being enforced in an evenhanded way for both heterosexual and same-sex couples. Assistant attorney general Peter Sacks said Massachusetts risks a "backlash" if it flouts the laws of others states by marrying gay couples from states that prohibit it. "We've got respect for other states' laws," he said.

The high court is expected to issue a ruling in the next few months. The eight couples who sued are from Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and New York. They include Sandi and Bobbi Cote-Whitacre of Essex Junction, Vt., who have a recognized civil union in their home state but want to marry.

"The civil union gave us state benefits, but we grew up believing that you find someone you want to spend the rest of your life with and you get married," Sandi said. "In reality, after 38 years I'm her wife and she's mine. We want the document."

After same-sex marriage became legal in the state in May 2004, Romney ordered city and town clerks to enforce the 1913 law and wrote to every other governor in the nation that out-of-state gay couples would not be allowed to marry in Massachusetts. A few communities initially defied the governor but eventually complied. (AP)

Reader Comments

These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.

Be the first to comment on this story.

Back to top

Submit a comment for this story:

*Type your comment here (Required, 1000 characters max. HTML formatting and hyperlinks are NOT permitted.):

*Name (Required): 

*Hometown (Required): 

*E-mail address: (Required, but will not be displayed)

Is this comment for publication? 
Yes   No

Daytime phone number: (Required for print publication only and will not be displayed)

Please enter the words you see in the box, in order and separated by a space. Doing so helps prevent automated programs from abusing this service.

  

If you would like to submit a comment for posting, please fill out the form above. 

All comments submitted via this form are subject to posting or publication. (To send a private letter to an Advocate editor or writer, please use the e-mail button at the top of the page, or use snail mail.) If you would like your comment considered for publication in The Advocate magazine, please include your full name, your city of residence, and a phone number where you can be reached during business hours so that we can confirm your identity. Your e-mail address and telephone number are strictly confidential and will not be shared or used for any purpose other than to contact you about your comment.

See the Contact page for sending comments for reasons other than responding to Advocate editorial and news stories.

Please note that comments sent by fax or snail mail are unlikely to be posted, although they will be considered for publication along with all letters received via e-mail or via this Web page. Comments that chiefly concern Advocate.com content will be considered for posting only on the Web site. The Advocate reserves the right to edit submitted comments for grammar, spelling, obscenities, or libel; we will, however, do our best to preserve the original comment's style and intent. Comments considered for publication in The Advocate magazine may also be edited for length.

More Exclusives
  • View From the Hill: The End of DADT?
    Defense Secretary Robert Gates revealed that lawyers are exploring ways to ease enforcement of the military's gay ban, but cautioned that the law doesn't leave much wiggle room. He need look no further than DOD history for a lesson in altering the policy.
  • Hot Sheet: Week of July 5
    When you get back from that big 4th of July barbecue, unwind with Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno and your favorite B-movie-mocking, basic cable robots.
  • Hungry Like the Wolf
    A master of viola, ukulele, piano, and harp, Patrick Wolf is a music prodigy -- one who, the night before this interview, spit on a cop and got himself arrested.
  • Soapside: Advocate's Guide to Daytime
    Forbes March talks about playing gay, Otalia fans outraged, update on One Life to Live’s Patricia Maurceri’s firing over gay plot point, Phillip Chancellor III big reveal, and Erica Kane goes to Africa.
  • The Faces of Federal Prop. 8
    With the federal challenge to Prop. 8 moving full speed ahead, Advocate.com sits down with the two couples named as plaintiffs in the suit.
  • Mommy, the Gays Are Coming
    After a year of advancements and celebration for gay and lesbian Colombians, the community takes to the streets of Bogota for the country's biggest pride ever.
  • The Pride of Antwerp
    Advocate.com hits the gay-friendly streets of Antwerp with openly gay police commissioner Serge Muyters.
  • Excerpt: Mean Little Deaf Queer
    In an excerpt from her humorous and harrowing new memoir, Mean Little Deaf Queer, Terry Galloway recalls her early childhood, describing feelings of ugliness, confusion about gender, and being one of the boys.
  • Top Political Blogs
    From Joe.My.God to The Daily Beast, Advocate.com spotlights a few of the best blogs that cover politics, inside and way outside the Beltway.
  • The Diva of French Television
    A hot young screenwriter who has made gay OK for millions of French viewers, Nicolas Mercier sips champagne, dons a feathered hat, and says he wants to see Colin Farrell and Jude Law go at it.