No Charges Against Mayor Who Married Gays

[Ralph]

07/13/2005
Charges dropped against New Paltz mayor in gay marriage case
By Steve Earley , Freeman staff

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NEW PALTZ - Jason West is off the hook.

The Ulster County District Attorney's Office announced on Tuesday that it's dropping criminal charges against the village of New Paltz mayor, ending more than a year of legal wrangling that began in February 2004 when West presided over the weddings of two dozen same-sex couples.

In a letter filed in New Paltz Town Court - where West faced misdemeanor charges for marrying who lacked licenses - Donald A. Williams said his office had fulfilled its legal obligation and that a trial would serve no public purpose.

"Any additional action would serve only to advance a personal agenda in highly volatile manner," Williams wrote. "To allow this divisive course of action would not be in the best interest of the community."

The prosecutor said a trial is not necessary because an injunction imposed last year bars West from performing any more same-sex weddings; a town judge's dismissal of the criminal charges was overturned on appeal; and state officials, notably Gov. George Pataki and Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, have said same-sex weddings violate New York law.

West proclaimed victory on Tuesday.

"I think it's complete vindication," the mayor said. "... Basically, Don Williams knows he would lose and he's backing down. He's been wasting taxpayer money for 18 months."

West's attorney, Andrew Kossover, echoed the mayor's comments.

"I consider it a victory for Mayor West, all of those who supported him and the issue he was attempting to promote," Kossover said. "At the same time, we're a little disappointed because a trial would have further raised the debate about same-sex marriage."

Williams said a trial would have been a "spectacle" filled with "rhetoric and hyperbole" but would have lacked a "viable public purpose."

Billiam van Roestenberg of Clintondale, who married Jeffrey McGowan in the first same-sex ceremony performed by West, said the charges being dropped represent a victory for the gay rights movement.

"Until recently, this country has discriminated against women, people of color, Jews, Catholics, Italians, Irish and more," he said in a prepared statement. "Finally, discrimination is almost over for gays."

Later Tuesday, van Roestenberg announced that a rally to celebrate the charges against West being dropped will be held at 6 this evening at the New Paltz Village Hall.

"We have won!" an e-mail from van Roestenberg proclaimed. "Happy gays are here again!"

West presided over the weddings of 25 same-sex on Feb. 27, 2004, at the Village Hall and was charged soon after with 24 misdemeanor counts of violating the state's Domestic Relations Law, which makes it a crime to wed couples that lack marriage licenses. No municipal clerk in New York has agreed to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

West could have been jailed for a year and fined if convicted.
I predicted this from the beginning.

*****

The charges against West were dismissed in June 2004 by New Paltz Town Justice Jonathan Katz, but they were reinstated by Ulster County Judge J. Michael Bruhn, who was acting on an appeal filed by prosecutors. In May, the state Court of Appeals refused a defense request to hear the case.

Katz, in dismissing the charges, agreed with West that denying marriage licenses to gay couples violated the equal-protection clauses of the state and U.S. constitutions, but Bruhn said the central issue in the case was whether municipal officials are allowed ignore laws they oppose.

West has been barred from presiding over same-sex weddings since March 2004, when state Supreme Court Justice Michael Kavanagh issued an injunction.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.