Nearly six months have passed since nine marriage ceremonies at the Jefferson City Correctional Center were canceled because the couples couldn’t obtain marriage licenses. The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri filed a suit in November on behalf of five of the fiancées who were determined to find a solution. On March 21, Chief United States District Judge Fernando J. Gaitan, Jr., ruled that a Missouri statute that requires both parties to sign a marriage license in the presence of the recorder of deeds is unconstitutional when an applicant is incarcerated. The Cole County recorder of deeds will be able to issue a marriage license with reasonable written proof authenticating the signature and incarceration of an applicant.
“Fundamental rights, like the right to marry, must be made available equally to all couples,” says Tony Rothert, legal director for the ACLU-EM. “The court recognized that Missouri’s statute was an insurmountable barrier and the Constitution required that it be removed.”
