Friday, December 23, 2005
Some judges argue the domestic violence law gives the couples legal status.
Associated Press
A constitutional amendment banning gay marriage does not bar prosecutors from charging unmarried people under the state's domestic violence law, two state appeals courts have ruled.
The decisions this month reverse rulings from judges in Cuyahoga and Warren counties who threw out domestic violence charges against unmarried men, saying the law conflicted with the amendment passed last year.
Jonathan Entin, law professor, at Case Western Reserve University, said it likely will take a decision from the state's high court to resolve the issue.
"Only the Ohio Supreme Court, of any court, has the real authority to answer the question," Entin said Thursday.
Lawyers for both men said Thursday they expect to appeal.
The 25-year-old domestic violence law applies to couples who live together like spouses, which some judges have argued gives their relationship a special legal status. Ohio's amendment bans legal recognition of all unmarried couples, as well as gay marriages.
Charges dismissed
The 8th Ohio District Court of Appeals on Tuesday overturned the decision of Judge Stuart Friedman of Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court in March to throw out a felony domestic violence charge against Frederick Burk of Cleveland.
Friedman ruled Burk, who is accused of slapping his live-in girlfriend, could be charged with assault.
One of Burk's lawyers, John Martin, said he expects to appeal.
Last week, the 12th Ohio District Court of Appeals in Middletown held that Warren County Common Pleas Judge Neal Bronson was wrong to dismiss a domestic violence charge against Michael Carswell of South Lebanon.
Both trial courts had ruled the charges unconstitutional.
Carswell is accused of assaulting his live-in girlfriend. His lawyer, Thomas Eagle, said he expects to appeal.
Warren County Prosecutor Rachel Hutzel, who argued for the state in the Middletown court, said about half of the domestic violence charges in her county involve unmarried people.
'A different problem'
After Bronson's ruling, Hutzel said her office began backing up cases with assault charges in case the domestic violence charges were dismissed so that a temporary protective order could be kept in place.
"We've been saying all along that the Defense of Marriage amendment was designed to attack a different problem," she said.
Lambda Legal, a gay-rights group based in New York, filed briefs in support of overturning the judges' decisions. Senior counsel Patricia Logue said the organization is pleased the appeals courts ruled in a way that limits the amendment's scope.
Logue said the amendment wasn't intended to apply to domestic violence.
"That's not what people were voting for," she said.
The marriage amendment also has prompted lawsuits involving custody disputes and health insurance for same-sex partners of public university employees.