ST. LOUIS, MO – St. Louis Mayor Francis G. Slay announced that marriage licenses were issued to four same-sex couples by St. Louis Recorder of Deeds, Sharon Carpenter, June 25, coinciding with the one year anniversary of the Defense of Marriage Act being struck down. The weddings were performed at the St. Louis City Hall.
“St. Louis is a city that doesn’t tolerate discrimination,” said Slay, standing beside the couples. “We are sending a message on what’s right, and I can’t think of anything more right than this.”
The ceremonies were performed in Mayor Slay’s office. Carpenter issued marriage licenses to the couples following the ceremonies despite Missouri’s 2004 constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.
“For years I contemplated taking this action, but the the legal climate was never right to take action and take a stand,” said Carpenter. “However, that all changed with the United States Supreme Court decision to rule all citizens have the right to marry under the law.”
The couples, all St. Louis residents, have been eagerly awating Missouri to legally recognize their relationships.
Richard Eaton and John Durnell, together for 39 years, were the first couple to be married. Tod Martin and David Gray; Miranda Duschack and Mima Davis; and Bruce Yampolsky and Terry Garrett were then married one by one in Room 200.
“This is a bold move by the Recorder of Deeds, Sharon Carpenter and Mayor Francis Slay,” said A.J. Bockelman, Executive Director of PROMO, Missouri’s statewide LGBT advocacy organization. “With the wave of state after state moving forward on marriage, their move shows that Missouri may not have been the first, but we will certainly not be the last to recognize marriage. We extend a resounding thank you today to these elected officials and the couples involved, all of whom exhibited profiles in courage by taking this action. Effectively they stood together and said it is time to "Show Me Marriage".”
A lawsuit demanding the recognition of the marriages could be filed as early as this morning.
"My generation failed their neighbors by not protecting their rights," Carpenter said. "We must allow ourselves to correct this mistake. We must set an example for the next generation. We can change, we can do better.
In February, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit seeking to force Missouri to recognize the out-of-state marriages of several same-sex couples. Sources close the case say it could be heard as early as this fall into next year
Missouri’s Amendment 2, which defines marriage in Missouri as between one man and one woman, was approved by 71 percent of voters in August 2004.
A press conference is scheduled for this morning at 9 a.m. This is an unfolding story - check back for updates.