On February 1st, the Fourth Department gave legal recognition in New York to a homosexual marriage that was performed in Canada in Martinez v County of Monroe, 2008 NY Slip Op 00909 (See My Post of February 3rd).
According to canada.com, Monroe County will now appeal the Fourth Department's decision to the Court of Appeals. Monroe County's top political official, Republican executive Maggie Brooks claimed that the Fourth Department's decision was a clear "misinterpretation" of New York law and must be challenged. She stated, "we're letting people in Ontario, Canada define marriage for people who live in New York State. I don't think that's appropriate."
The conservative Coalition to Save Marriage in New York has applauded the appeal stating, "one activist court is not at liberty to substitute a foreign law for our state's law simply because that court may prefer the foreign law. This decision compromises the sovereignty of our state and violates its public policy."
The couple involved in the marriage, Patricia Martinez and Lisa Ann Golden, were not surprised by the appeal. However, the couple said: "We still view our marriage as legitimate. No court decision will devalue or negate what our marriage means to us."
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Posted by: Charlotte | February 25, 2008 at 11:31 AM
This issue has absolutely nothing at all to do with civil rights or equality. Any unmarried adult in New York is completely free to marry an unmarried, unrelated, consenting adult of the opposite sex. Freedom truly is a wonderful thing. If someone chooses to pursue a relationship that does not fit within the definition of marriage (i.e. a relationship with a married person, an underage person, a close relative, or a member of the same sex), they are completely free to make that choice; the state is also free not to redefine the institution of marriage to accommodate that choice. This issue is about (a) a small special interest group trying to redefine marriage for everyone else; (b) an activist court doing an end run around the legislature to further an extremist agenda; and (c) another nation's marriage laws being forced on New York. Congratulations to County Executive Maggie Brooks for having the guts to appeal.
Posted by: Anonymous | February 29, 2008 at 04:42 PM