Same-sex marriage opponents seek to remove Massachusetts justice

Legislative opponents of gay marriage have filed a bill seeking to remove Massachusetts supreme judicial court justice Margaret Marshall from the bench, blaming her for the decision that paved the way for same-sex marriages in Massachusetts. The sponsor of the bill, state representative Philip Travis (D-Rehoboth), said he believes Marshall had already made up her mind before hearing the case and pressured other justices to go along with her decision. "I think we should go after the person who was the source of the problem," Travis said Tuesday. He said he filed the bill on Friday, May 14, before the ruling took effect on May 17. The bill is similar to another proposal that targets all four justices who voted to legalize same-sex marriage. Travis said he disagreed with that tactic and wanted to keep the focus exclusively on Marshall. Despite the efforts of gay-marriage opponents, there seems to be little appetite on Beacon Hill for taking the extraordinary step of removing the justices. Gov. Mitt Romney, an outspoken critic of gay marriage, has said he does not support targeting the justices and has instead focused his efforts on amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage. Lawmakers narrowly approved a modified version of such a proposed amendment, which would ban marriage but allow civil unions for same-sex couples.