DC declares hi-tech gay marriage invalid: Skype can’t be used by Texas couple
”I think it’s interesting they didn’t contact me or contact the couple…. The law is really kind of ambiguous. It doesn’t say all parties have to be present—just that the ceremony needs to be performed within the jurisdiction of D.C. And it was, technically.”
Sheila Alexander-Reid, a lesbian based in Washington, DC who presided over the wedding of two men in Texas via Skype, the online video phone service. She tells TBD here that the marriage of Mark Reed and Dante Walkup was determined to be invalid. (TBD)
”In good faith, we planned our wedding accordingly because we thought we were talking to the experts…. It was based on homophobia or politics or both.”
Mark Reed-Walkup one of two men from the Dallas, TX area who attempted to be the first couple legally married while in Texas. A Family Court letter sent to the couple (and to the officiant who performed the ceremony) says the marriage needed to be performed in-person within the boundaries of Washington, DC. It was believed by those involved that they could have a valid “e-wedding” in front of friends and family at home in TX because similar ceremonies seem to be valid for other heterosexual couples who, for example, might be in the military and stationed in a foreign country. (Dallas Observer)
Marriage for gay and lesbian couples has only been legal in the District of Columbia since March 2010.
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