>>An interesting consequence of the fall of DOMA and Don't Ask Don't Tell...

>>

>>

Gay troops prep for September marriage spree, put wedding parties on ice

By Bill Briggs, NBC News contributor

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09 ... n-ice?lite

September marks nuptial season across part of the American military as gay and lesbian troops cash in new, Pentagon-granted leaves to tie the knot.

Starting Tuesday, the Pentagon is allowing gay troops to take travel leaves for up to seven days — or as many 10 days for those stationed abroad — as long as those service members live 100-plus miles away from a state that allows same-sex marriages.

Scores of service members are draining their savings just to pay for airfare, hotels and rental cars — common, logistical necessities for obtaining a marriage certificate in one of the 13 states where same-sex marriage is legal, advocates say.

While many of these unions may lack champagne-soaked celebrations, they are fueled by a practical brand of urgency: gaining immediate, military-family benefits, said Stephen Peters, executive director of the American Military Partner Association (AMPA).

After the Supreme Court’s decision to scrap the Defense of Marriage Act, leaders at the Department of Defense announce

Dave (imported) wrote: Sat Aug 31, 2013 6:25 am d that same-sex spouses of military members w

ould become eligible this month for an array of federal benefits previously offered only to heterosexual spouses, from housing to health care. At the same time, DOD authorized the special leaves for troops seeking same-sex marriages.

"This will provide accelerated access to the full range of benefits offered to married military couples throughout the Department, and help level the playing field between opposite-sex and same-sex couples seeking to be married," Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen, a Pentagon spokesman, said via email. "We do not have an estimate of how many people this will impact."

At least three service members who work with AMPA have all hatched similar marriage plans for this month: quick trips to California to obtain licenses during their authorized leaves with festive wedding parties to follow sometime next year — or beyond.

"For us, California is the easiest way to go," said Melissa Jones, an Army E-3 (private first class), based at Fort Hood, Texas. She and her girlfriend, Danielle Nelson, have booked a seven-day trip to San Diego later this month. "We’re going to pretty much just get it done at the county courthouse. We’re not going to have a ceremony out there. We’ll do that back here with family and friends."

Melissa Jones, left, and Danielle Nelson, will secure a marriage certificate in California this month to gain military-family benefits. Their wedding party will come later.

To help pay for their flight and hotel room, Jones and Nelson, both 20, cashed in their large collection of loose change plus $450 in recent bingo winnings.

“Many of our families simply can’t afford the costs of traveling across the country to get married in addition to having a large, expensive ceremony,” said Peters, executive director of the AMPA. “Many can barely afford to travel to a city clerk’s office across the country, wait the required number of days for waiting periods, and finally take care of the paperwork, only to hope for a larger and more formal ceremony at a later date.

“This all boils down to the financial burden they face in having to travel across country — or around the world, for many — a challenge that heterosexual (military) couples are not forced to face in order to care for their family,” Peters added.

'Just for the paper'

Despite the initial costs, the military benefits Jones will gain through marriage will save her thousands of dollars in the long run.

A marriage license will allow Jones to qualify for "base allowance housing," under which the military subsidizes service members' off-base apartments so long as they are legally married or are raising a child or children. That alone saves the couple about $700 per month, Jones said. And as a military spouse, Nelson's college tuition will be federally covered, instantly saving her an additional $4,000 per semester.

If Nelson falls ill after she's married, she can receive her medical treatment at Ford Hood thanks to her new military-family identification card and the official military decal she'll receive for her car. Currently, she must pay for medications out of pocket. The couple has been together for a year and a half, meeting two months before Jones headed to basic training.

"A lot of the urgency of this is that we’re missing out on a lot of benefits," Jones said. "It's not like we’re doing it for the money, but it’s going to help pay for things. I’m 20 years old and I’m helping her pay for college. I also have a car loan and an apartment. We both have full-time jobs. But getting the benefits, she can stop working and can just focus on school.

"I wear (an engagement) ring. People are always asking: 'Are you married?' I’m like: 'Yes and no.' People don't understand that. So I tell them that I'm gay and I have go 1,500 miles away just to get married," Jones said. "It’s not like we’re not going to enjoy it while we're there. But it kind of is just for the paper."

>>It is sad that it's a death certificate but this is the second decision that forces OHIO to recognize a same-sex marriage.

>>This is creating a body of law that can be cited and brought to any court of the land.

>>

>>

Ohio Must Recognize Same-Sex Marriage, Federal Court Rules

By Kim Palmer

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/0 ... 63068.html

CLEVELAND, Sept 3 (Reuters) - For the second time in two months, a Cincinnati federal judge granted an order allowing the out-of-state marriage of a gay couple to be recognized in Ohio even though the state bans same-sex marriages.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Black on Tuesday issued a temporary restraining order allowing David Michener of Cincinnati to be listed as "spouse" on the death certificate of his husband, William Herbert Ives, who died last week. The couple was married in Delaware this past summer.

In July, Judge Black had granted a temporary order allowing James Obergefell the right to be listed as "spouse" on John Arthur's death certificate after Obergefell and Arthur were married in Maryland.

Arthur suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a terminal disease and is not expected to live long, according to court documents. Obergefell had sued the state, challenging as unconstitutional a law defining marriage as being only between a man and a woman.

The rulings by Black represent a victory for same-sex couples in a state where voters in 2004 restricted marriage to between a man and a woman. Thirteen states and the District of Columbia allow gay and lesbian marriage.

In making his ruling on Tuesday, Black cited the U.S. Supreme Court's June decision striking down a key part of the 1996 federal Defense of Marriage Act that

Dave (imported) wrote: Fri Aug 30, 2013 5:40 am defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

"The issue whether states can refuse to recognize out-of-state same sex marriages is now surely headed to the fore," Black wrote.

Michener and Ives, the Cincinnati couple, had been together for 18 years and adopted three children before they were married in Delaware on July 22, according to court documents. Ives died unexpectedly on Aug. 27 and is scheduled to be cremated on Wednesday.

Oral arguments in the case are schedule to be heard in December.

Views on gay marriage in Ohio are changing rapidly, especially among the young. An April 2013 Quinnipiac University poll showed that 48 percent of Ohio voters - and 68 percent of those between the ages 18 and 34 - supported same-sex marriage.

An Ohio group, Freedom to Marry, announced in April a plan to bring an amendment allowing two individuals to marry regardless of gender to the Ohio ballot in 2014. (Reporting by Kim Palmer; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Lisa Shumaker)

>>

>>

Hawaii Governor Calls Gay Marriage Special Session

By OSKAR GARCIA 09/09/13 10:19 PM ET EDT

Dave (imported) wrote: Wed Sep 04, 2013 7:25 pm http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/0

9/hawaii-gay-marriage_n_3896746.html

HONOLULU — Gov. Neil Abercrombie on Monday called for a special legislative session to move forward on a bill that would legalize gay marriage.

If lawmakers pass a bill, Hawaii would join 13 U.S.

Dave (imported) wrote: Wed Sep 04, 2013 7:25 pm states and the District of Columbia

in allowing gay marriage. The special session is scheduled to begin Oct. 28.

The bill is the culmination of 20 years of discussion, Abercrombie told reporters during a news conference at the Hawaii Capitol.

"Every variation on a view with regard to the issue of marriage and equitable treatment for those engaged in marriage has been aired, has been analyzed, has been discussed," Abercrombie said. "No one has been left out or has been marginalized in the process to this point."

Abercrombie acknowledged that some people will be against the bill because they disagree with the concept of gay marriage, but he said it includes provisions – including a religious exemption – to protect First Amendment rights.

Abercrombie said he chose to call a special session rather than allow legislators to consider the issue next year in part because of implications on taxes for this year.

Dave (imported) wrote: Wed Sep 04, 2013 7:25 pm http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/0

9/hawaii-gay-marriage_n_3896746.html

Maybe they should leave it up to the individual island?

Yeah, and maybe the state needs to stay OUT of people's business...

Dave (imported) wrote: Fri Aug 30, 2013 2:20 pm That's what I thought when I saw that the moved.

I keep changing the title of the reply to reflect the state or the law. For anyone that doesn't know how to do that, hit "go advanced" next to the post button and there's an entry for the post's title.

There is a story about New MExico but I can't sum it up in 100 words it's so complicated. The ACLU is going to file suit on behalf of some 2004 marriages thanks to a divorce ... HUH? ... That was my reaction -- "what?" Maybe someone in New Mexico can explain it.

So when they do file suit and I see it in the news, I'll post it.

May AP or some nice newspaper will write a coherent article.

I'm from New Mexico although I lived in Colorado for twenty years. I cannot explain it. Well, OK, actually those 2004 WEDDINGS (here we must differentiate between weddings and marriages) were conduct

devi (imported) wrote: Thu Jun 27, 2013 2:14 pm ed in Sandoval county in 2004 and

have never been definitively ruled upon as valid or not. This leaves these people who have had those weddings in limbo. Would they have to have a divorce in order to get married again or not without being accused of bigamy or not? You cannot be married twice. Any wedding outside the state plus any inside the state prior to 1964 when "same sex" marriages were abolished are legitamate. However as for those particular 2004 weddings there still is some question of legitamacy and timing.

It must be remebered that most of the natives of New Mexico recognized another gender besides "male"...................................or............. ..........................."female"

AHA -- I thought so.

Whatever is going on with whatever those are -- marriages or weddings

IS

(wait for it)

IS a LAWYER'S WET DREAM

A case where no knows knows what the hell the case is about (not even the litigants) but the lawyers are arguing for each side.

And they have been arguing for TEN YEARS.

you just gotta love lawyers, don'tcha?

Dave (imported) wrote: Thu Sep 12, 2013 2:17 pm AHA -- I thought so.

Whatever is going on with whatever those are -- marriages or weddings

IS

(wait for it)

IS a LAWYER'S WET DREAM

A case where no knows knows what the hell the case is about (not even the litigants) but the lawyers are arguing for each side.

And they have been arguing for TEN YEARS.

you just gotta love lawyers, don'tcha?

Lawyers: If there is not an obvious cause for a lawsuit they will create one.

>>I wondered if a mere Clerk like a "register of wills" or a "prothonotary" had the power to do what this fellow did.

>>Apparently not.

>>

>>However, parties are now married and face consequences and as the article points out, that gives them standing to take the case to a higher state court or into a federal court.

>>

>>

THU SEP 12, 2013 AT 12:55 PM PDT

Pennsylvania judge halts same-sex marriage licenses

Dave (imported) wrote: Tue Aug 27, 2013 4:31 pm http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/0

9/12/1238432/-PA-Judge-halts-same-sex-marriage-licenses

In a 34-page opinion issued Thursday morning, the Hon. Dan Pelligrini of the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has ordered Montgomery County register of wills Bruce Hanes to cease and desist from

Losethem (imported) wrote: Thu Jun 27, 2013 1:12 pm issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples,

which he had begun doing last month in defiance of state law. The ruling does not touch upon the validity of the 118 licenses issued and certified to-date, which presumably will be resolved either (a) when one of said couples is denied state benefits, and chooses to litigate, or (b) through a separate frontal assault on PA's discriminatory marriage law recently filed by the ACLU of Pennsylvania and presently in the early stages of litigation.

The decision can be summarized as follows:

This is the right Court to hear this case, and the Pennsylvania Department of Health has standing to file this suit.

The register of wills performs ministerial duties only, and has no authority to impose his own constitutional interpretations onto his role.

Nor can he raise the alleged unconstitutionality of Pennsylvania's marriage laws as a defense to this action.

At bottom, writes Judge Pellegrini:

Until a court has decided that an act is unconstitutional, Hanes must enforce the law as written, and it is not a defense to a mandamus action the law may be unconstitutional. A court can arrive at the conclusion....

Governmental officials carry out the functions assigned to the office and no more because when decision are reached that follow these and other constitutional procedures, it fosters acceptance of a statute or decision even by those who even strongly disagree. When public official don’t perform their assigned tasks, it creates the type of “complication” caused by the United States

Riverwind (imported) wrote: Sun Jun 30, 2013 8:55 pm Attorney General decision not to defend

DOMA, which led the Supreme Court of the United States in Windsor to spend as much time addressing that “complication” as it did on the merits of the case. In this case, a clerk of courts has not been given the discretion to decide that a law whether the statute he or she is charged to enforce is a good idea or bad one, constitutional or not. Only courts have the power to make that decision

... Because only the General Assembly may suspend its own statutes and because only courts have the authority to determine the constitutionality of a statute, and because all statutes ar

Dave (imported) wrote: Fri Jul 12, 2013 8:11 pm e presumptively constitutional, a pub

lic official “s without power or authority, even though he is of the opinion that a statute is unconstitutional, to implement his opinion in such a manner as to effectively abrogate or suspend such statute which is presumptively constitutional until declared otherwise by the Judiciary.”

Sounds like this judge wants to hear a case or wants the congress and governor to act, sounds like he is ready to strike down the old law and just looking for a legal way to do it.

As I have said, this is going to happen sooner then later.

River