This is a
big deal.
The Vermont Supreme Court said Friday that Vermont courts, and not those in Virginia, have exclusive jurisdiction over an emotional case between two women arguing about custody over a child they had while they were in a lesbian relationship.
The unanimous ruling in Vermont conflicts with a series of decisions in Virginia courts, which held that that state's anti-gay marriage laws controlled the case.
In recognition of the legal union, the Vermont Courts have ruled for joint custody of the former couple's child. The Virginia courts, of course, refused to recognize the validity of the union - and therefore the family - at
all.
(Quick background - the case involves a spouse in a civil union who became a quote-unquote "ex-gay" and renounced her sexual preference. "Reparative therapy" has been condemned by mental health professionals as destructive, but is very popular among the evangelical set. They often parade the "successful" ex-gays around as success stories. They have to while they can, as this "treatment" never takes... surprise, surprise! Here's a link)
The issue will likely have to be settled at the US Supreme Court, where the 4 conservative activist justices - Roberts, Alito, Thomas, and Scalia will without question vote against the Vermont courts. As such, all eyes will be on Justice Kennedy, who is the default "moderate, swing vote" on the Court these days, even though he is clearly conservative. Still, there is hope, if for no other reason than he is not a gleeful reactionary, as evidenced by his authorship of the majority opinion in Lawrence and Garner v. Texas, the 2003 Supreme Court case that overruled the Court's previous 1986 decision upholding sodomy laws (Bowers v. Hardwick). In throwing out Bowers, Kennedy wrote:
"The state cannot demean their [homosexuals'] existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime."
At least he'll have an open mind. No reaction yet on the website of the Center for American Cultural Renewal, the Vermont wannabe-players in the National Religious Right scene who were peripherally involved in the case initially.
[Crossposted from Green Mountain Daily]
UPDATE: Vermont's local theocrats at the CFACR just weighed in:
The Vermont Supreme Court ruled on August 4, 2006 that Vermont courts have exclusive jurisdiction over the Lisa Miller-Jenkins custody case. Virginia had ruled other wise, finding that Lisa was entitled to custody over her daughter born while she was in a lesbian relationship with Janet Miller-Jenkins. This ruling is a blow to pro-family advocates and everyone wanting laws to mean something.
Let's all take a moment to chuckle at the idea of supporters of this administration expressing concerns about "wanting laws to mean something."