Tuesday, July 09, 2013

ACLU to Challenge Pennsylvania Gay Marriage Ban

As noted in a post back in March, a Harvard Law School professor predicted that combined decisions as handed down in Perry and Windsor would open a flood gate of lawsuits challenging gay marriage bans and disparities on federal benefits based on the state of one's residency even if couples legally married in a pro-gay marriage state.  That prediction seems to be about to come true as the ACLU prepares to file a lawsuit challenging Pennsylvania's gay marriage ban.  Similar lawsuits are likely to multiple in other states with gay marriage bans.  The Daily Times looks at this development.  Here are story highlights:

The American Civil Liberties Union said it will file the first known legal challenge Tuesday seeking to overturn a state law effectively banning same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania, the only northeastern state that doesn't allow it or civil unions.

The lawsuit, to be filed in federal court in Harrisburg, also will ask a federal judge to prevent state officials from stopping gay couples from getting married. It names Gov. Tom Corbett, Attorney General Kathleen Kane and three other officials. The plaintiffs are one widow, 10 couples and one of the couples' two teenage daughters, and they include four couples who were legally married in other states but whose marriages go unrecognized by the state of Pennsylvania.

The plaintiffs, including Deb and Susan Whitewood, who have been together for 22 years, said their willingness to join the lawsuit was driven both by a desire to have the same legal and financial protections afforded to opposite-sex couples and the emotional satisfaction of seeking social justice.

"I wanted our relationship to be respected like everybody else's relationship," said Susan Whitewood, 49, who lives in the Pittsburgh suburb of Bridgeville. "That was first and foremost the reason for doing this. I wasn't looking for legal validation."

Her 16-year-old daughter, Abbey, who is also a plaintiff, said she is excited to fight for her family's values.

In the lawsuit, the ACLU said banning gay marriage satisfies no legitimate government or child welfare concerns of the state, since Pennsylvania judges routinely grant adoptions to same-sex couples that are viewed as in the best interest of the child.  "It serves only to disparage and injure lesbian and gay couples and their families," the lawsuit said.  For instance, the suit says, same-sex couples do not have access to a long list of legal and financial protections as do opposite-sex couples.

Those include an inheritance tax exemption for widows; an automatic power of attorney for spouses in health care decisions; damages and legal recourse under workers' compensation laws for a spouse who dies or is injured in the workplace; assistance programs for same-sex widows and widowers of military personnel and veterans; pension and survivor benefits for widows and widowers of public employees; Family Medical Leave Act provisions; and a spouse's Social Security retirement benefits.

In Pennsylvania, recent polls show a majority are in favor of gay marriage. In 2012, the state voted for President Barack Obama, a Democrat who supports gay marriage, and in 2010 for Corbett, a Republican who supports a constitutional amendment to permanently ban it. Bills to legalize gay marriage have gone nowhere in recent years in the Legislature, and Corbett's predecessor, Democrat Ed Rendell, did not favor the legalization of same-sex marriage while in office.

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