Possible GSA Case Makes News

Not everyone who is arrested or prosecuted for consensual sex is a sympathetic person overall. Sometimes, they've done other things that should continue to be crimes. Regardless of whether someone is a career criminal or a true pillar of the community, consensual relationships and sex between adults should not be a crime, and should not be fodder for ridicule in what are supposed to be serious news services. Stories like the one below are not justification to deny full marriage equality. For every situation like the one detailed below, there are many great people who are in consanguinamorous relationships and you never heard about them. Or, they are famous and admired, but their consanguinamory remains closeted.

Here is Lee Moran's article at nydailynews.com...

A Texas meth-head and his sister confessed to incest after they were caught passionately kissing in prison, police said.

Charlene Ellet, 25, and her brother Cameron Beck, 26, were allegedly busted locking lips between jail cell bars after getting arrested for possession of meth.

The Houston duo now faces prohibited sexual conduct charges on top of the initial drug allegations.

So this happened in Texas but is in a New York newspaper. Why?

Montgomery County Police Reporter said that the pair was picked up at a Wal-Mart on Friday after Ellet was caught stealing.

Deputies detained Beck, who'd driven his sister and her 2-year-old twin girls to the store, after finding traces of meth in his car.

Taken to Montgomery County Jail and placed in neighboring cells, deputies said they were stunned when the pair started kissing each other on the lips through the bars.

They should have learned from this. Texas is one of the worst states when it comes to consanguinamory. Here's why I think this is a possible case of Genetic Sexual Attraction...

Confirming they were siblings, Ellet said they had the same biological mom but that she had been adopted.

She revealed they struck up a pen pal relationship as Beck was in prison and hooked up on his release in November.

The couple lived in a motel room with Ellet's two daughters, and would often have sex behind a partition as the two girls watched TV.

Here's the coverage at examiner.com.

Here's the coverage at opposingviews.com.


Here's what appears to be the original source, montgomerycountypolicereporter.com.


And dailymail.co.uk had to carry it, too.

Read more »

Posted in: brother-sister,consanguineous,GSA,incest,law,media,prosecution,reunion,siblings,Texas

Another Marriage Denied Equality

By my count, this is the thirtieth ongoing relationship I've covered through exclusive interviews in which the lovers are denied the freedom to be open about their love and are denied their fundamental right to marry.

Chelsea is a bright young woman, legally free to marry a complete stranger. But she can't legally marry the man she is living with as husband and wife.

Read the interview below and ask yourself if there is one good reason these two consenting adults should be denied their right to marry. THIS INTERVIEW DOES GET SOMEWHAT SEXUALLY EXPLICIT.


*****


FULL MARRIAGE EQUALITY: Describe your background.

Chelsea: I am a college graduate at a major Texas University and majored in Business Administration and currently reside just outside of Dallas, with my father. I currently work for him in a manufacturing plant in an adviser capacity. I am 26 years old and originally from Oklahoma. Most of my family ties and friends from school still reside there. I have some English, Irish and a bit of Spanish in my blood. I am about 5 feet 9 inches and weigh about 145 lbs last time I weighed myself.  I am a big-boned girl, so I will never be considered petite.  I love to eat, so it is always a battle to keep my weight down. I topped off at about 165 lbs periodically in my life, so far.  I have medium brown hair but sometimes have dyed it black.

I have one older brother.

My mom divorced dad when I was much younger and lives near Oklahoma City with her husband. I have sporadic contact with them.

I like bowling, hiking and volleyball. I also love to travel, usually on business trips with my dad. I love to sing, but will never make it as the next American Idol, but do belt out a few songs on karaoke night at local clubs.

Anonymous Dad: She is a lot to love and I love her a lot!  She is smart, witty but can't sing worth a lick, but then again I am no Frank Sinatra either.




FME: Are you married or have you ever been married?

Chelsea: I have never been married to an unrelated man. But I am 'married' to my father. Of course,  we could not have a nice, big church wedding with friends and family invited to attend nor have the big reception and the cutting of the cake and throwing out the garter and all of that. I have my regrets of not being fitted for a lavish wedding dress and having matching bridesmaids to accompany me. But dad and I had a little ceremony of our own with my brother in attendance and we exchanged our own special vows and my father bought me a ring. My father refuses to tell me exactly how much it cost him. I plan on wearing that ring until the day I die.

Father: Let's just say that I spent more on this ring then I did for her mother’s. And in a better, more tolerant world, I would have loved for her to have a wedding for the ages, one that will be forever memorable for her, and us. But she is still happy with how things turned out and her happiness is all that matters to me.


FME: How would you describe your sexual orientation and your relationship orientation... are you heterosexual, bisexual, what? Are you a monogamist, polygamist, or....?

Chelsea: I am mostly straight, but did experiment with a female on a couple of occasions in high school as well as in college. Mostly kissing and hugging but I did go down on my college roommate a couple of times and she on me. Dad knows about it but I never gave him a “show.” I think he would have liked that. I think most guys would. After mom divorced my father,  I was the only female left in the house so it was myself, dad and brother. Would I have sex with a woman again? I probably wouldn't shy away from the opportunity but for now am quite happy with being married to my father and plan on being with him for life.

Father: I am an advocate of lesbianism and give them my full support!  Would 'I' have sex with another woman again?  Not as long as I have my sexy daughter as my partner.   


FME: You currently live with… ?

Chelsea: My father. It is just the two of us in a nice house at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac.  There are two houses within 50 yards of our home and the neighbors think we are just a couple that is in a May-December relationship. They have no idea that we are father and daughter and for now, we have no plans on telling them.


FME: What kind of relationship did you have while you were growing up?

Chelsea: I was always daddy's little girl and some days, my father still treats me that way. He was my first crush when I was in middle school and my feelings have never wavered. He has always been there for me to dry away my tears, fix my boo boos on my scraped knees or cut fingers.

Mom seemed to be too busy with her hobbies, her own job and her circle of friends. Mom left dad just before I turned 13.

We all pulled together as a team, to make the household work. My father was a little despondent at first, because he never really intended to see his wife go. They had grown apart due to not being together that often.  Mom was always preoccupied with her own world of friends and was always out and about in her job as a bank officer for a major financial institution. Dad became Mr. Mom.

I was on the cusp of puberty and transforming from little girl to young woman. It was scary, exciting and confusing all at the same time for both me and dad. Sometimes I would come home from a bad day at school because of a fight with a girl over a boy or because I showed interest in a boy and he didn't return that interest. Dad would do all he could to comfort me and assure me that things will be alright and to not let things get me down. There is always another day, another tomorrow. I enjoyed those times with my father from the beginning.

Father: Chelsea would side with me for most arguments that I had with my wife. I could do no wrong, even though that wasn't really true. I am no angel; nobody is perfect. But I always tried to look at the practical side of things. I remember disciplining her.


FME: How did sexual affection become a part of your relationship?

Chelsea: His hugs and kisses were always reassuring.  I loved him so much. As I aged, those kisses became a little more intense. Not just a peck on the forehead or cheek, but a kiss on the lips started to become more of the open mouth variety until one day our tongues met. I never thought it would become a prelude to having sex with my father at the time, but later dad did admit that those early kisses did excite him greatly.

Father:  She was and is always an attractive daughter. Secretly, I DID long for her but fought the urges for the good of the family unit. After all, she had had to finish growing up without her mother there.

Chelsea: Some of the kissing was done in various stages of undress. Dad, my brother and I didn't always keep our doors closed, so we would have fleeting glimpses of our bodies. One night before bedtime, my brother peeked in on us. Dad was kissing me not just on the lips, but also on my neck and moved to my upper chest. Natural, human instincts were taking over and my father deftly opened my nightgown, exposing my breasts. I moved dad's head down to them and closed my eyes. Or breathing grew short and shallow. We had reached a threshold that had no point of return. He continued to touch and tongue my breasts and tt felt amazing. My dad was the first male to make love to my breasts.  In fact, dad was the first male I did anything and everything with sexually.  My brother was enjoying the show of course and pleaded with me later on to do it with him.

Father: It was quite an event, that first time. I was a little concerned that it would backfire, and that I would lose the trust of my daughter. I patiently waited for when I thought the time was right. I must admit I fought my own urges to seduce her because she was so young and vulnerable. She is my daughter, for goodness sake! A few months later, my son started to join in. He’s two years older than her and there was no reason to leave him out.


FME: How do you describe the lovemaking now?

Chelsea: Fantastic!  Dad and I pretty much do it all sexually. The sex with my father always seemed natural. Our sexual liaisons were a perfect fit.  No pun intended.  Dad, brother and I enjoyed each other sexually without any reservations. We all benefited.  I enjoyed orally servicing them, many times at the same time. They always returned the favor.

I went on the obligatory dates so that people wouldn't 'talk', because I had two, at home “boyfriends” in my father and brother. I sucked a c--- or two just to keep things quiet among the guys I did go out with but most of the oral sex, I performed on my dad and big brother.

We enjoyed kinky threesomes for quite a few years.  It has just recently ended with my older brother.  He found himself a nice lady and has moved several miles away due to his employment situation, so it is now just me and my father enjoying each other's company and bodies. To my dad and I, nothing is too kinky or off-limits. We have f---ed in just about every position there is. Dad is a big man. 6 foot 2 inches and about 240 lbs. He has been able to handle my sometimes 160 lbs with ease. As I mentioned earlier,  I am around 145 lbs right now but I don't think I can lose too much more. What I am getting at is when dad has intercourse with me, while he is standing up and holding me up in the air. It is crazy wild sex!  We have also tried bondage and other kinky activities and have performed role play.  A lot of times I will call him 'daddy' when we are having sex. A truer word has never been spoken!

Sometimes, we just have time for a little quickie in the morning before we leave for work.  I will suck my father off so as to get him in the right frame of mind and ease any tensions he may have for the upcoming work day. Besides, I certainly don't mind having my dad for “breakfast.”  During the week our schedules don't always permit full-fledged sexual activity. At night, we just go to bed, naked under the covers and kiss each other until we fall asleep. The weekends are a whole other story.  Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays are our best times.  Especially Sunday morning. Oftentimes dad and I won't get out of bed or the bathroom until noontime! We aren't really religious types, even though we are both Catholic. So we have missed quite a few Masses.  But we never miss on the opportunity to worship each other's bodies. 

Father: I can safely say, that my daughter is my Viagra.  She keeps me running young.  Sometimes she wears me out,  but it is the best kind of weary a man can experience and always leaves a smile on my face. We’ll view online porn and try things we see.


FME: Describe your relationship now.

Chelsea: We are man and wife in our eyes now.  We’ve long been a couple, but did have our brother joining us whenever he could. But he understood that dad is my husband and I am dad's wife.  He has been quite excited and supportive of the arrangement all this time. It is up to my brother whether or not he rejoins us. Dad and I will always accept him in our fold. If he returned today, we would welcome him and have at it like we used to.  I really liked having both dad and my brother in me or me servicing them at the same time and would do it again in a heartbeat.

There are still days where dad and I will argue a point as father and daughter, but for the most part, we behave just like any other normal married couple. The roles have gradually developed into dad just being the loving husband and me, the loving wife. But our blood relationship is always in the back of our minds.

We have no children - yet.  I am 26 years-old, so my biological clock still has quite a few ticks in it. I would love to get pregnant with my father's baby.  It would complete our incestuous coupling and seal us together, forever.  We have discussed it. We may try to have a child together, soon. My father and I are not overly concerned about the ramifications of our DNA being the same. We are certain that the baby would be healthy and don't buy into the hype that he or she would be defective physically or mentally.


FME: Does anyone in your life know the full, true nature/history of your relationship and how did they find out? What kind of steps, if any, have you had to take to keep your privacy?

Chelsea: Other than my brother, my best girlfriend from high school knows about us.  I have spoken with her over the telephone and we have shared emails over the years.  My mom suspects something is going on because of the few times I have talked to her by telephone she knows that I have not legally married nor has dad legally remarried. Of course, the longer our absence, the more people and relatives will speculate as to where dad and I have disappeared to. My paternal grandfather is aware. We did move a few hundred miles from our immediate neighborhood so as not to arouse suspicion or confrontation. We don't want to flaunt our incestuous union. In a more perfect world, incest could and would be accepted throughout the world! Out here in Texas, nobody knows that we are father and daughter, so we can go to a park and kiss and hug, or hold hands  or have our arms around each other or on our shoulders while shopping at a mall or being intimate at a nice quiet restaurant without fear of being recognized and discovered for who we are.

Father: I confessed to my father awhile back ago after much prodding. He has kept mum about it also and just told me to keep things under wraps. I assured him that I love [her] and would never do anything to hurt her or force her into doing anything against her will.  He is the one that suggested that the best thing for us to do is to move away from the immediate area so as to fend off the naysayers and protesters out there, including other family members like some of the conservative aunts and uncles that would most likely wish that we “burn in hell.”  Dad and I correspond by phone and email to keep abreast of other family developments however.


FME: Having to hide the full nature of your relationship from some people can be a disadvantage. Can you describe how that has been?

Chelsea: For that reason, family reunions are out of the question. That is really the only big “con” in the pros and cons of our incestuous relationship. We are missing out on milestones such as cousins, nephews and nieces birthdays as well as the occasional wedding. That is the biggest disadvantage. Other than that major element,  my father and I are quite happy with the love affair that has grown and blossomed.  It has been said that a girl looks for a mate that is a lot like her father. In my case, my mate is my father and I wouldn't want it any other way and neither does my dad.


FME: What do you want to say to people who disapprove of your relationship, or disapprove of anyone having this kind of relationship? What's your reply to those who would say that this is one of you preying on the other and that you can’t truly consent?

Chelsea: Fortunately, my father and I have not had that confrontation as of this day. To them I would say, who are you to judge?  What about those who are married and get divorced, or how about those that abuse their spouses? Wife beaters,  even wife killers?   How about those who abuse or mistreat their children? Do they disapprove of that? My father and I are in a loving relationship that knows no limits. We have had our arguments, we have raised our voices over finances, clothes, maintenance on the car, leaving dirty dishes in the sink, etc. That is normal. But at no time has dad abused or taken advantage of me. I wanted this relationship from the beginning and so did dad. We have treated each other with dignity and respect and if and when we raise a family, we will bring our children up with unrestricted love and caring. Isn't that what life is all about?

Father: Everything with my daughter just fell into place. There was a natural progression to our sexual activity. I never took advantage of her, abused her, nor raped her. It was all a result of loving and gentle kindness. Nothing ever forced or coerced.  The word 'No' was as powerful then as it is now.


FME: Aside from the law, which I think is ridiculous, can you think of anything that would make relationships like this inherently wrong?

Chealsea: Yes, we are related, yes we of the same flesh and blood, but if we behave and live in a loving and cherished manner, what is so “inherently wrong” about that?  Besides, it is none of their business!  I would rather go to jail instead of separating myself from my father's strong arms and his warm embrace.


FME: If you could get legally married, and that included protections against discrimination, harassment, etc., would you?

Chelsea: As I mentioned before, I would absolutely love to become legally married to my father - my biological father. Yes world, my own biological father! I would be a blushing bride, but a proud one also - proud to be my father's legal wife and some day the mother of his children!

Father: If consensual incest were legal and totally accepted by society, instead of walking down the aisle with my daughter to give her up to another man,  I would be the proud groom,  waiting for someone to give her - to me - and ready to take my daughter's hand in marriage - to me.


FME: What advice do you have for someone who may be experiencing feelings for a father or daughter, or some other relative? What advice do you have for family members and friends who think or know that relatives they know are having these feelings for each other?

Chelsea: Explore those feelings. Drop hints here and there. Be subtle about it. Wait for the proper reaction. Display patience. Don't just go up to that relative and say “I want to jump your bones!” If, after some time, perhaps even a year or two, the feeling isn't reciprocated in any way, then it is time to move on. You don't want to miss a signal or a cue that is the exact opposite of what you hoped for. That could lead to an embarrassing situation that could be hard to extract yourself from. If the feelings of sexual attraction are mutual, by all means, be honest with each other. Set the ground rules as to what is expected and progress from there. Communications goes a long way

As for those who think or know of relatives that have a physical attraction to each other, as long as it is consensual and they are both of legal age, I say leave them be. Don't meddle in other people's affairs, be it they are relatives or not. Unless it directly affects you, stay out of it. The only time you should become involved is if you know someone is being mistreated or abused. Even then, that could be difficult.  


FME: What would you say to someone who doesn't believe you are for real?

Chelsea: They should read up on just how common and real incest is. Father/daughter, brother/sister, etc. It is more widespread than many of those doubters think and dates back to ancient times. Royal families used to engage in incestuous practices to keep the blood line pure. If they think that incest does not exist, then they are in denial, or living under a rock. Or they are fearful of the unknown, because incest is not part of their every day life. And incest will thrive and flourish as long as humans continue to roam the earth. As long as people interact together, depending on the functions or dysfunctions of the family structures, incest will be an alternative and/or a solution and remain prevalent in our society. 


FME: Have you met in-person or do you know anyone else who has experience with consanguineous sex or consanguinamory?

Chelsea: I have corresponded with a young woman that has had sexual trysts with her father.  They occurred when she was in college at the same school that I attended. She is now married and has a child with another man. I met her one time, when I was a Senior in college. It was a relief to unburden myself to someone that was not from my neighborhood, that had no family or friendly ties to my community. She opened up to me also. Alas, I haven't heard from her in a few months, but had been keeping in touch via email.

I haven't met in person another father/daughter couple but have encountered couples that look like they are dad and daughter, but don't know for sure. I see couples like this wherever I go; be it the shopping mall, supermarket, movie theater, restaurant and wonder to myself… Are they, could they?  Or am I the only one living as a “married” woman to my own father? I think not, but just haven't actually met with and sat down with a true, father and daughter that are in a similar arrangement as dad and I are. I hope to someday! I do have a limited few online contacts that I chat with or email on occasion that seem to be along the same lines as myself with children also.


FME: Any plans for the future?

Chelsea: Continuing to have sex with my father as long as we see fit, both mentally and physically.  Also, as mentioned earlier, try for a child and a family.  That would be wonderful! 

Father:  I just hope Chelsea still wants me when I am old and grey.

Chelsea: Of course I will daddy! I am your girl, always!

*****

There you have it. Consenting adults who aren't hurting anyone, but are denied their freedom to marry.

Why should they be denied their rights? There’s no good reason.We need to recognize that all adults should be free to be with any and all consenting adults as they mutually consent, and part of doing that is adopting relationship rights for all, including full marriage equality sooner rather than later. People are being hurt because of a denial of their basic human rights to love each other freely.

You can read other interviews I have done here.

If you are in a relationship like this and are looking for help or others you can talk with, read this.

Thank you to Chelsea and her hubby for doing this interview!

Read more »

Posted in: brother-sister,consanguineous,family reaction,father-daughter,lack of equality harms,love,Oklahoma,siblings,Texas

Houston Mayor Annise Parker To Marry?

Houston Mayor Annise Parker had previously said that she wouldn't marry her partner of 23 years until it becomes legal in Texas.  But according to Culture Map Houston, a wedding is now planned for next month.

"The world is changing so fast, maybe I won't wait that long," Parker said last week in a year-end interview with CultureMap when asked when she would marry. "I'm no longer worried that (gay marriage in Texas) is not going to happen in my lifetime. After the Supreme Court ruling and the number of states that now have equal marriage, it's coming." Since then CultureMap has learned that Parker and Hubbard are making wedding plans. Several sources close to the couple said they plan to marry in mid-January in a low-key ceremony in Palm Springs, Calif.

A spokesperson for the mayor declined to confirm the report. (Tipped by JMG reader Joe)

Read more »

Posted in: Annise Parker,gay weddings,Houston,Texas

TEXAS: Country Nightclub Kicks Out Gay Couple For Dancing Together

Read more »

Posted in: bigotry,country music,nightlife,Texas

HOUSTON: Lambda Legal Sues City Over Same-Sex Spousal Benefits

In late November, openly gay Houston Mayor Annise Parker announced that city employees who are legally married in other states were now eligible for spousal benefits. Three weeks later a judge suspended Parker's edict pending the outcome of a lawsuit brought by local Christian leaders. Yesterday Lambda Legal sued the city in order to reinstate the benefits ordered by Parker.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas on behalf three City of Houston employees legally married to same-sex spouses and follows notification these employees received recently that the City, one month after extending the employee coverage fortheir spouses, was being forced to withdraw these benefits and cancel the coverage. “City employees who are married to same-sex spouses are doing the same work as coworkers who are married to different-sex spouses—at the end of the day this case is about equal pay for equal work.These employees, some who have worked for the City for manyyears, acted in good faith when notified the City was extending health coverage benefits to their legal spouses,” said Kenneth Upton, Senior Counsel in Lambda Legal’s South Central Regional Office in Dallas.

Read more »

Posted in: Annise Parker,Houston,Lambda Legal,lawsuits,LGBT rights,marriage equality,religion,Texas

Tweet Of The Day - Annise Parker

They're going nuts over in Teabagistan. Enjoy.

Read more »

Posted in: Annise Parker,Duck Dynasty,gay politicians,Houston,Phil Robertson,reality shows,Texas

HOUSTON: Judge Suspends Spousal Benefits Edict For LGBT City Staffers

A Texas judge has issued an order suspending spousal benefits for LGBT employees of Houston.

State District Judge Lisa Millard issued the order in response to a lawsuit filed by Harris County GOP Chair Jared Woodfill, on behalf of plaintiffs Jack Pidgeon and Larry Hicks. The order from Millard, a Republican, says the city must stop providing the benefits pending a hearing on Jan. 6. Pidgeon and Hicks, who are Houston taxpayers, brought the suit in response to Mayor Annise Parker’s decision in November to extend benefits to the same-sex spouses of city employees who are legally married in other states. The plaintiffs allege that Parker’s decision violated the Houston city charter, the state Defense of Marriage Act and the Texas Constitution.

A spokesman for Parker has vowed to seek an immediate reversal. So far only three staffers have signed up for the benefits.

Read more »

Posted in: Annise Parker,Houston,LGBT rights,Texas

Matt Baume: Marriage News Watch

Clip recap: "We have a major setback this week in Australia, but there's still a glimmer of hope. Marriage equality hearings are coming up in two unlikely states: Arkansas and Texas. An Oregon ballot measure passes a major hurdle, and organizers launch a new public outreach campaign on the east coast."

Read more »

Posted in: AFER,Arkansas,Australia,Texas

TEXAS: GOP Candidates Agree, Creationism Must Be Taught In Schools

The Dallas Morning News reports that all four GOP candidates for Texas lieutenant governor agree that creationism should be taught in public schools.

Late last month, state Board of Education members adopted new high school science books that include full coverage of evolution without the disclaimers sought by social conservatives and other critics of Charles Darwin’s theory. While none of the lieutenant governor candidates mentioned the board’s decision, three — Patrick, Patterson and Staples — blasted teaching only evolution as a form of “political correctness.” They linked it to what they described as a broader moral decline. “The breakup of the family in this country has started when we took God out of the classroom,” said Patrick, a radio talk show host. “As a Christian, certainly creationism should be taught,” said Staples, a former state legislator. Dewhurst, who is seeking a fourth term, agreed. "It’s a fair discussion to expose students to both sides and let them make the decision with the advice and counsel of their parents,” he said.

(Tipped by JMG reader Eric)

Read more »

Posted in: creationism,education,religion,Texas

TEXAS: Judge Schedules Hearing For Temporary Block On Gay Marriage Ban

A Texas judge has scheduled a February hearing on a demand to temporarily block the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

Two same-sex couples from Plano and Austin filed the request for an injunction in November. The case is a part of seven similar ones filed in other states with the goal of eventually getting the constitutionality of a ban on same-sex marriage in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Federal District Judge Orlando Garcia set the Texas hearing for February 12 at 9:30 a.m. at the John H. Wood, Jr. United States Courthouse in San Antonio. If the judge grants the injunction, the case will be eligible for immediate appeal to the U.S. Fifth Circuit of Appeals in New Orleans.

(Tipped by JMG reader James)

Read more »

Posted in: lawsuits,marriage equality,Texas

TEXAS: Red-Caped Catholic Loons To Picket The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told

"One word describes the indecent play: blasphemy. Blasphemy is not free speech. Defamation is not artistic expression. The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told is a twisted version of the Bible story told from a pro-homosexual perspective and doesn't belong in any theater. It begins with scenes of 'Adam and Steve' expelled from a Garden of Paradise with full frontal nudity and ends with the Blessed Mother portrayed as a lesbian. This immoral and defamatory play drags the pure and immaculate reputation of the Mother of God into the mud of unnatural vice. As most Americans prepare to celebrate Christmas, the Kalita Humphreys Theater is going out of its way to attack the Mother of God. Not only does this gravely offend her Son Jesus Christ, but it also wounds countless Catholics who regard the Virgin Mary as their own mother. For decades the homosexual movement has been calling for more and more tolerance. However, there's nothing so intolerant as blasphemy."- John Ritchie, head of Tradition, Family, & Property, announcing a protest to be held tomorrow.

RELATED: In April the red-caped Catholic loons staged a noisy protest outside of the Broadway production of The Testament Of Mary.

Read more »

Posted in: Catholics,crackpots,crazy people,Dallas,freedom of speech,religion,Texas,TFP,theater

Same-Sex Marriage: State Legislatures to County Family Courts

Here come the lawsuits.  In the wake of the SCOTUS ruling in June striking down same-sex marriage bans and granting federal benefits to same-sex married couples, many couples are finding their way to court houses across the country.

Most states that have what could be called "gay-friendly" legislatures, something that we would expect changes over time, have already passed laws specifically granting gay couples the right to marry in a dozen states.  So the strategy among proponents of the notion of gay marriage has shifted from the state capitols to the county courthouses.

In Santa Fe County, NM, for example, a family court judge ordered the county clerk's office to issue marriage licenses to couples without regard to their gender or sexual orientation, ruling within a brief hearing that doing so was now unconstitutional.  At the time of this blog post, 7 counties in New Mexico have followed suit.

In neighboring Texas, the Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for November in two cases where same-sex married couples were granted divorces from Texas county family courts.  The Texas Attorney General has intervened in the divorce proceedings, asserting the divorces issued by the family courts are invalid because they implicitly recognize same-sex marriage; something proscribed by Texas law.

Cases in Tennessee and Kentucky are also percolating through the state courts, testing state laws proscribing same-sex marriage.  In one of the several cases pending in Kentucky, one-half of a same-sex married couple is on trial for murder and the issue in the court is whether his "better-half" can be compelled to testify, or whether he should be granted spousal immunity.

In another high-profile case from Franklin County, Kentucky, a same-sex couple filed suit against the Governor on grounds that Kentucky's outright constitutional ban of same-sex marriages violates the Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. and Kentucky constitutions.  This is the same issue that was decided in California in the SCOTUS Windsor case.

Currently, there are too many same-sex marriage cases to track unless you are a law professor or law student writing a law review article on the subject.  Unlike the SCOTUS' 1973 Roe v Wade decision, considered the height of judicial activism, which created a sweeping constitutional ban on anti-abortion legislation, last term's same-sex marriage decision adopted a state-by-state approach.

While the momentum toward recognition of same-sex marriage as a civil right has gained steam since we here at the Law Blogger picked-up on the issue back in 2009, it will take at least a quarter century for the current dust to settle.  At least that is our prediction.

www.clarkstonlegal.com
info@clarkstonlegal.com

Read more »

Posted in: 14th Amendment,divorce,equal protection,New Mexico,same-sex marriage,SCOTUS,Texas

Last Words From Death Row

By: Timothy P. Flynn

This post is straight from Texas, our most prolific death penalty state.  Texas has executed over 800 death row inmates since the SCOTUS ruled in 1976 that the death penalty was not cruel and unusual punishment after all.

A typical death house drill includes the condemned selecting and consuming one last meal and, just prior to execution, is provided an opportunity to make a statement.  In Texas, these statements have been posted to this Texas Department of Corrections link, along with a brief summary of the inmate's capital conviction.

Fascinating stuff, to be sure.  Some of the most hardened inmates decline comment.  Others make one last assertion of innocence.  Invocations of Allah and Jesus abound; saying goodbye to family and loved ones, promising to wait for them on the other side; exhortations to the system that crushed them and to the brothers they left behind on the row.

Charles Thomas O'Reilly, the recently retired warden of the Huntsville Unit, the prison that houses the death house, presided over 140 executions; the most in Texas history.

The death penalty is and has always been a divisive issue in America.  32 states have death penalty sentencing statutes to the 18 that have banned such punishment, including, most recently, New York, and New Jersey in 2007, and Illinois in 2009.

In the 1972 case of Furman v Georgia, the SCOTUS suspended capital punishment on the basis of the 8th Amendment bar against cruel and unusual punishment.  Then four years later, SCOTUS reinstated capital punishment for murder convictions, provided a trial was bifurcated into two segments: a guilt phase, and a punishment phase where the trier of fact gives separate and specific consideration to the punishment and the convicted defendant has the opportunity to present evidence on mitigation.

Last week, Kimberly McCarthy was executed in Texas.  She was the 500th person in Texas to be executed since it resumed executions in 1982, and the 13th woman to be executed in the United States since the 1976 resumption of the death penalty.

Back in 1998, Karla Faye Tucker was another infamous female death row inmate at the Huntsville Unit.  She was the subject of the book Crossed Over.

Truly, do not mess with Texas.  Texans are willing to walk the fine line between the fair and the harsh.

www.waterfordlegal.com
info@waterfordlegal.com

Read more »

Posted in: 8th Amendment,capital conviction,Charles Thomas O'Reilly,death penalty,Huntsville Unit,Karla Faye Tucker,Kimberly McCarthy,SCOTUS,Texas,Texas Department of Corrections

SCOTUS Hears Same Sex Marriage Cases Today

We've been watching the gay-marriage case, Hollingsworth v Perry, for two years; here's a link to our first post detailing case.  Two well-funded homosexual couples from California, one gay, one lesbian, challenged California's proposition 8 in federal court back in 2008, and the case finally will be orally argued tomorrow at the SCOTUS.

Their lawyers, Ted Olson and David Boies of Bush v Gore fame, are well-suited to the task of bringing the couples' privacy-based arguments to the Supreme Court.  Olson was Solicitor General under President Bush; he appears to have changed his stripes for this one.

Since that original post, two other consolidated federal cases have made their way through the federal court system and will be argued before the SCOTUS on Wednesday.  United States v Windsor challenges the denial of federal benefits for gay couples under the Defense of Marriage Act [DOMA].

As many as 17 states have filed amicus briefs in opposition to gay marriage.  Court watchers are bracing for a seminal ruling along the order of the High Court's Roe v Wade decision that legalized abortion.

Others say, "not so fast."  Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is one such voice.  She has made a series of public comments lately critical of such sweeping decisions; they go too far too fast says Ginsburg.

A less judicially active approach in the Roe v Wade would have been to strike down the Texas anti-abortion law on an "as applied" basis, but leaving the broader constitutional questions to be determined on a state-by-state basis.  Of course, this is not what the Roe v Wade Court did; the political and cultural fall-out continues to this day.

Considering possible outcomes in the gay-marriage cases being argued today, the post-modern SCOTUS faces the choice of invalidating California's Proposition 8, and if they do, whether they do so in a broad or narrow fashion.  Expect concurring and dissenting opinions; perhaps even a plurality decision which, by its nature, has a less-binding effect on subsequent courts.

Either way, we will keep our readers posted when the decision is announced at some point in June like we did when New York legalized same-sex marriage in June of 2011.  The results from these cases will be important to Michigan which, like California, passed a constitutional amendment declaring marriage to be a status limited to heterosexual couples.

www.clarkstonlegal.com
info@clarkstonlegal.com

Read more »

Posted in: 14th Amendment,California,David Boies,Hollingsworth v Perry,Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,Proposition 8,Roe v Wade,same-sex marriage,SCOTUS,Ted Olson,Texas,United States v Windsor

Fired Up in Texas

From khou.com comes a report that a man is accused of arson for setting fire to a place he shared with his wife. What does that have to do with this blog? Well, read four yourself....

There were words painted on the drive way that said “___  sleeps with mom happy b day,” court documents stated.

Edwardo Saldana’s wife said they had separated and that he had recently moved back into her home. The couple had gone to Galveston with her son to celebrate a friend’s birthday.

Saldana’s wife said they got into an argument and he took the only vehicle and left everyone else in Galveston.

Saldana later told a work supervisor that he found his wife and stepson in a room with their pants down and that he got scared and left, but went to the house where he poured gasoline in the bedrooms and burned furniture on the patio, according to court documents.

I'm guessing Saldana wouldn't have consented to a polyamorous or open relationship, at least not involving his stepson.

Would an arsonist lie? Consensual incest allegations are no small matter in Texas, which actually has a law criminalizing sex even between first cousins, even though heterosexual first cousins can legally marry in about half of US states. If there is something going on between the mother and son, they should keep quiet about it because it sounds like the only witness is a guy who has issues with the law himself.

Read more »

Posted in: cheating,consanguineous,family reaction,mother-son,Texas