Ruling Clears Way For NYCF Challenge Of Marriage Equality Law

Livingston County,  NY (WIBX) - After passage of the same-sex marriage bill, a conservative group, New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, filed court documents challenging the legality of the legislative process used to bring the bill up for a vote. This week, a Livingston County Supreme Court Judge ruled in favor of the group--clearing the way for the lawsuit to move forward. NYCF Executive Director, Rev. Jason J. McGuire says his group didn't win the definition of marriage argument, "But, we did win at least tentatively on the courts on the open meetings law, where we believe that there was some arm twisting and we believe that there were some intensions made of campaign contributions toward certain senators in exchange for their vote--that's a real problem, that strikes right at the heart of the integrity of the legislative process," McGuire said.

NYCF aggressively lobbied against the bill, and McGuire says the ruling makes it clear that the issue should have been decided by the voters. "I do not believe that bill would have passed had it been a open, transparent, clean legislative process. I think the governor knew it, I think that's why you have the governor and the state senate went this route--it was the only way to secure the vote that they desired," he said.

The judge, Robert Wiggins, says his ruling was not based on any personal views, but if a legitimate argument over whether a private meeting Governor Cuomo had with Senate Republicans on the gay marriage issue, violated the state’s open meetings law.