The New York state Supreme Court Appellate Division ruled 4 to 1 that a lower judge in NYC was in error, ruling in favor of homosexual couples wanting to "marry" in that city. There's hope yet that reason will triumph.
According to an AP story ("N.Y. ruling allowing gay nuptials voided", 12-9-05):
A state appeals court threw out a ruling yesterday that would have allowed gay couples to marry in New York City, saying it is not the role of judges to redefine the terms ''husband" and ''wife."
The state Supreme Court's Appellate Division ruled 4 to 1 that Justice Doris Ling-Cohan erred in February when she held that the state's domestic relations law is unconstitutional since it does not permit marriage between people of the same sex.
The appeals court added: ''We find it even more troubling that the court, upon determining the statute to be unconstitutional, proceeded to rewrite it and purportedly create a new constitutional right."
Ling-Cohan barred the city clerk from denying marriage licenses to gay couples. Her decision was the first of its kind in New York City. In her ruling, she said the words ''husband," ''wife," ''groom" and ''bride," as they appear in the domestic relations law, should be defined to apply equally to men and women.
But the appeals court said this ''was an act that exceeded the court's constitutional mandate and usurped that of the Legislature." The court said it is not up to judges to redefine terms that are given clear meaning in a statute. Also, the appeals court said state laws regarding marriage do not violate the state constitution.
