New York Upholds Recognition of Out of State Gay Marriages

A New York appellate court has reached what I believe is the correct result based on past practices and case law and affirmed a lower court ruling that Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano did not violate the state constitution or earlier court rulings when he ordered county departments to recognize gay marriages legally performed in other states and countries. No doubt, Christianists will decry the ruling, but it is the only correct result. At least until the standoff in the New York Senate gets resolved and marriage legislation can be moved forward out of state gay marriages will be recognized. Unfortunately, it will be years before Virginia's vicious "Marriage Amendment" is either repealed or struck down by the federal courts. Here are some highlights on the New York ruling:

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A state appeals court has upheld an unflinching ruling by a lower court that Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano did not violate the state constitution or earlier court rulings when he ordered county departments to recognize gay marriages legally performed in other states and countries.

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The unanimous ruling by the Appellate Division in Brooklyn is the second in a year to include gay couples in the state's tradition of recognizing marriages performed elsewhere even if the marriages could not be legally performed here. In February, an appeals court in Rochester ruled that Monroe County must provide health benefits to the woman who was married to a female county worker in Canada.

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"Marriage has come to New York for same-sex couples," said Susan Sommer, senior counsel with Lambda Legal, a gay rights group in New York City that defended Spano's order against the four Westchester residents who challenged it in court. She said the next step is for the state "to allow same sex couples to marry here at home instead of having to travel to a foreign country or another state."

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A gay marriage bill passed the Assembly but went nowhere in the Senate, where the Republicans who controlled that chamber until this week refused to allow it to a vote. Democrats now control the Senate, but their support for gay marriage is not unanimous.