An appeals court has dismissed a
challenge to Cleveland's gay-inclusive domestic partnership registry,
Cleveland
gay weekly Gay People's Chronicle reported.
The lawsuit, which claims the registry
violates Ohio's 2004 voter-approved gay marriage ban, was originally
tossed out last November by Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge
Joseph D. Russo.
The 3-judge appeals panel ruled
unanimously on September 30.
“Domestic partners are not given the
same respect by society as a married couple, and they share none of
marriage's history and traditions,” Judge Colleen Conway Cooney
wrote in the court's decision.
Cincinnati attorney David R. Langdon
filed the suit together with Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund
(ADF) attorneys on behalf of Dorothy McGuire, who represents the
group Cleveland Taxpayers for the Ohio Constitution.
Cleveland law director Robert Triozzi
said the city is prepared to defend the law should Langdon appeal the
decision to the Ohio Supreme Court.
Cleveland's domestic partnership
registry, which
came on-line in 2009, is open to both gay and straight couples
and offers no guaranteed benefits, rights or responsibilities
whatsoever. Gay rights activists, however, have hailed the council's
creation of the registry, calling it an important first step in
recognizing gay couples.