From The Guardian UK: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/27/new-mexico-gay-marriage-albuquerque
District Judge Malott on Monday ruled New Mexico’s constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation
Associated Press in Albuquerque
theguardian.com, Tuesday 27 August 2013
More than 100 people were lined up in Albuquerque on Tuesday morning as the clerk in New Mexico‘s most populous county began issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples.
The clerk opened her office to the crowd at 8am, and a mass wedding was planned at noon in Albuquerque’s Civic Plaza.
Patricia Catlett, a 61-year-old graphic designer from Albuquerque, and her partner of 25 years, Karen Schmiege, a 69-year-old retired librarian, were the first to get their license in Bernalillo County.
“I am so excited I can’t stand it,” Schmiege said as they were signing their papers.
As they walked out of the booth where they received their license, the crowd applauded and yelled in celebration. The couple raised their hand, and the crowd responded by putting their fists in the air.
“I want her to take me to Costa Rica,” said Schmiege. “She promised.”
The Bernalillo County Clerk joined clerks from the state’s other two population centers in recognizing same-sex unions after a judge Monday declared gay marriage legal.
State District Judge Alan Malott on Monday ruled New Mexico‘s constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
The decision comes on the heels of an order last week from a judge in Santa Fe that directed the county clerk there to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Two days earlier, the clerk in the southern New Mexico county of Dona Ana decided to recognize same-sex couples.
But Malott’s ruling was seen as more sweeping than the temporary Santa Fe order because he directly declared that gay marriage was legal.
Laura Schauer Ives, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, called it “monumental” and said the group didn’t expect such a broad decision by Malott. The judge had been asked only to order that the state recognize, on her death certificate, a dying woman’s marriage Friday in Santa Fe to her longtime partner.
Continue reading at: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/27/new-mexico-gay-marriage-albuquerque
