Page 21
-
Judge hears arguments in challenge to Missouri same-sex marriage ban
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri doesn’t allow first cousins to legally marry, but recognizes such marriages if they were legally performed in other states. The same goes for couples who were too young to wed in Missouri but were allowed to do so elsewhere. An attorney for 10 same-sex couples who legally wed in other states told a Jackson County judge …
-
Oral arguments to begin in Missouri same-sex marriage challenge
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City judge is scheduled to hear oral arguments Thursday in a case challenging Missouri’s refusal to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The lawsuit in Jackson County Circuit Court, filed by 10 same-sex couples who were legally married elsewhere, mirrors dozens of others across the U.S. that argue …
-
Marriage News Watch: More states waiting for Supreme Court on marriage rulings
A surprising reveal this week from Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg about the court’s plans for taking up a marriage case — or maybe not taking up any. An Arkansas clerk breaks ranks with top state officials, declaring for the first time that the state’s marriage ban is unconstitutional. Plus: numerous states freeze their marriage lawsuits…
-
Attorney’s letter draws rebuke in Mo. fire department’s same-sex benefits debate
OZARK, Mo. — A prominent Springfield, Mo., attorney has penned a letter praising a local fire department for denying health benefits to a gay firefighter’s wife, saying he is tired of attempts “to cram homosexuality and lesbians down our throats.” Dee Wampler sent the letter to several individuals regarding the debate of health benefits within the Ozark Fire Department…
-
Report: Marriage equality would add $36 million, new jobs to Missouri economy
Extending marriage to same-sex couples in Missouri would generate an estimated $36.3 million in spending to the state’s economy and could generate as many as 900 new jobs over three years, according to a new study. Researchers at the Williams Institute, an independent think tank at UCLA’s School of Law, estimates that — based on 2010 U.S. Census data…
-
Gay teachers asked to resign from Catholic school after marrying in N.Y.
ST. LOUIS — Some graduates of a suburban St. Louis Catholic school are upset the school asked two female teachers to resign after they were married in New York. Olivia Reichert and Christina Gambaro say Cor Jesu Academy officials asked them to quit in late July after the school received a copy of a mortgage application with the couple’s names. The all-girls Catholic high school…
-
Mo. fire department blocked from granting same-sex spousal benefits
OZARK, Mo. — A southwest Missouri fire department that was considering extending benefits to an employee who is in a same-sex marriage has been told that the state constitution won’t allow it. Last week, the Ozark Fire Department’s board appeared ready to change its policy so that it could offer the benefits to Capt. Andi Mooneyham, whose out-of-state …
-
Challenge to Mo. same-sex marriage ban heads to trial
ST. LOUIS — A legal challenge to Missouri’s same-sex marriage ban returns to court in St. Louis. The city issued marriage licenses to four same-sex couples in June, setting up a court fight in a state where gay marriage is banned under a 2004 amendment to the Missouri Constitution.
-
Missouri same-sex marriage case moved to federal court
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A lawsuit challenging Missouri’s ban on same-sex marriage has been moved to federal court instead of state court. The lawsuit was originally filed in Jackson County by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of two same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses. Attorney General Chris Koster’s office intervened in the case…
-
Gay bar in rural Missouri hell bent on beating the odds
French Village, Mo., is a unique setting for a gay bar. The hour drive down Interstate 55 from St. Louis is a scenic trek – exiting on Highway Y, one must pass through the pastoral green and farmland along the hill-crowned blacktop to the entrance of Goose Creek Lake to reach their destination. Norma Jean’s opened its doors on Friday, July 18, 2014. It was a labor of love…