The fight over gay marriage found a new battleground Monday: Maryland?s highest court.
In a packed courtroom, seven judges of Maryland?s Court of Appeals heard arguments over whether a 1973 Maryland law defining marriage as between one man and one woman is unconstitutional.
“Fundamental rights belong to all Marylanders, not only to those who historically enjoy them,” argued Ken Choe, an attorney with the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project.
But Maryland?s General Assembly Counsel Robert Zarnoch countered that elected officials should decide the issue in Maryland, not the courts. Zarnoch said the 1973 law does not favor one gender over another.
But Choe argued that defining marriage in such a way that excludes gays and lesbians is another act in a long history of discrimination.
“It is undisputed that lesbian and gay people have long suffered systemic and egregious discrimination,” he said.
The state is asking the high court to overturn a Baltimore City Circuit Court ruling that defines marriage as being between a man and a woman.
The case arose from nine gay and lesbian couples who sued five Circuit Court clerks in Maryland after they were denied marriage licenses in the state.
Baltimore City Circuit Judge Brooke Murdock ruled that the denial, based on the 1973 law, violated Maryland?s Equal Protection Amendment, which prohibits discrimination based on gender.
Murdock stayed enforcement of her ruling in anticipation of the appeal.
Prince George?s County plaintiffs Alvin Williams and Nigel Simon said they want to marry to give their adopted children added comfort and security.
“This is a historic day for us,” Simon said. “There are some people who will not come forward because they?re scared.”
