New Mexico County Now Allowing Same-Sex Marriages

[Guest YFSC]

New Mexico County Now Allowing Same-Sex Marriages

 

SANTA FE, N.M. (Reuters) - Officials in a New Mexico county next to Santa Fe said on Friday they have granted their first same-sex marriage licenses, adding the state may become the next battleground over the issue of gay marriage.

 

Officials from rural Sandoval County, which is southwest of Santa Fe and home to a massive Intel Corp. semiconductor manufacturing facility, said they have already issued 10 same-sex marriage licenses after finding this week no laws on the books that prevent gay marriages in New Mexico.

 

The Massachusetts Supreme Court has declared that state's laws limiting marriage to men and women to be discriminatory, while in California, the city of San Francisco is openly defying state law by marrying thousands of same-sexcouples.

 

"There's nothing in the law that I can find that would prohibit issuing same-sex marriage licenses," said Sandoval County Clerk Victoria Dunlap. She said several more same-sex couples have sought to marry.

 

"I'm sure New Mexico will become the next test ground," she said. "We're fairly open-minded here despite the rural area we're living in."

 

State officials on Friday were scrambling to find laws that addressed the issue.

 

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Patricia Madrid said their office has received two requests from state senators for an opinion on the legality of same-sex marriages in the state. The office expects to have an opinion on the matter next week.

 

"We realize the importance of this to the public," spokeswoman Sam Thompson said.

 

Gov. Bill Richardson, a Democrat who is often mentioned as a potential vice presidential nominee, has voiced his opposition to gay marriage in the past but does support equal rights for same-sex couples. His office could not be reached for comment.

 

Sandoval County officials said that other counties have denied same-sex unions because of a form written in 1961 that calls for one male and one female applicant for a marriage license.

 

 

02/20/04 14:40

[Boston Guy]

Yup. It's pretty cool.

 

I've been posting related articles in the "San Francisco and Chicago" gay marriage thread as I come across them, trying to keep things in one place. But I hadn't seen this full article.

 

Thanks for posting it.

 

BG

[+ glutes]

Also the King of Cambodia has ruled that gay marriages are legal after seeing the footage from SF!

[Bilbo]

Unfortunately, I think I read that the NM Attorney General ruled against this and Sandoval County ceased and desisted.

[Guest YFSC]

>Unfortunately, I think I read that the NM Attorney General

>ruled against this and Sandoval County ceased and desisted.

 

Yes, on Friday night.

Sandoval County ceased and desisted because the AG issued a ruling.

But it's not clear on what basis the AG did so, since New Mexico apparently does not have any laws prohibiting or that could reasonably be interpreted as prohibiting same-sex marriage. And apparently even the marriage law does not make gender references, but instead refers to the parties with terms like those usually found in a more mundane contract, sort of like "party of the first part," etc. Not those, but something like that.