Feb 11, 2005  |  By: MIKE LAVERS  | COMMENTS     

NEW YORK — A stunning decision by a New York City judge on Feb. 4 gave new life to the national debate over gay marriage. New York State Justice Doris Ling-Cohan ruled that the state’s Domestic Relations Law, which limits marriage to heterosexual couples, violates the state’s constitution.

Ling-Cohan stated in her opinion that denying marriage licenses to gay couples deprives them equal protection and due process under the law. The ruling was the first of its kind in New York and immediately thrust New York City into the epicenter of a raging national debate and created a political firestorm for Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Lambda Legal & Education Fund filed the lawsuit after five same-sex couples were denied marriage licenses by New York City Clerk Victor Robles last March. In her decision, Ling-Cohan insisted that allowing the plaintiffs to be married “cannot be said to harm anyone. Same-sex couples are entitled to the same fundamental right to follow their hearts and publicly commit to a lifetime partnership with the person of their choosing.”

For the couples in the case, Hernandez vs. Robles, Ling-Cohan’s decision validated their relationships.

“We are so excited about this,” said Curtis Woolbright, a Manhattan waiter and aspiring voiceover artist, during a news conference at Lambda Legal’s Manhattan headquarters after the court issued its verdict. “We never thought we would win.”

Standing alongside their daughter Aliya, 15, Jo-Ann Shain and her partner of 23 years, Mary Jo Kennedy, said they were “overjoyed” by Ling-Cohan’s ruling. Shain, a legal editor, added that the court’s ruling gives her hope that she, her partner and other same-sex couples would soon be able to get married in New York and receive the legal benefits and protections associated with marriage.

“Last week, Mary Jo and I celebrated our 23rd anniversary together, but we’ve never had all the protections and rights that came with marriage,” she said. “We need these protections to take responsibility for each other and for our daughter. And we are enormously grateful that the court saw that and said our family should be treated equally.”

Susan Sommer, Lambda Legal’s lead attorney in the Hernandez case, agreed. She said Ling-Cohan’s ruling is the first step in achieving marriage equality for gay couples in New York.

“This is a historic ruling that delivers the state constitution’s promise of equality to all New Yorkers,” Sommer said. “The court recognized that unless gay people can marry, they are not being treated equally under the law.”

Ling-Cohan’s ruling does not take effect for 30 days — unless it is appealed, which is likely. The case would then slog its way through the state’s judicial system. Eventually, it would end up on the docket of the Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court.

Mixed reaction to ruling
As Lambda Legal and the plaintiff couples celebrated their legal victory, gay groups around the country applauded the court’s ruling.

“The court simply recognized that every New Yorker deserves the same promise of equality under the law,” said Seth Kilbourn, vice president of the Human Rights Campaign’s Marriage Project. “Ensuring that every loving and committed couple in New York has equal access to marriage is about ensuring New Yorkers’ basic freedom.”

Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, described Ling-Cohan’s decision as “brilliant” and “moving.” He added that it contains “compelling logic” that “demolishes each and every argument raised against extending same-sex couples the freedom to marry.”

James Esseks, litigation director for the American Civil Liberties Union’s Lesbian & Gay Rights Project, complimented Ling-Cohan for recognizing “how unfair it is to deprive couples who make life-long commitments to each other of the many protections they need and deserve for their families.”

For gay New York City Councilmember Christine Quinn (D-Chelsea), Ling-Cohan’s ruling was a historic moment in the ongoing struggle for gay rights. “This is a precedent setting decision for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in New York and around the country,” she said.

Florida-based Liberty Counsel, which has been pursuing legal action against Jason West, the mayor of New Paltz, N.Y., for marrying gay couples a year ago, sharply criticized the ruling. Liberty Counsel President Mathew Staver said the judge, “demonstrates the need for marriage amendments at the state ...