Alabama married same-sex couples caught in limbo

Tori and Shanté Wolfe-Sisson made front pages nationwide in February when they became one of the first same-sex couples to be married in Alabama, but are they married?

Two weeks after the marriage the Alabama Supreme Court ordered probate judges to stop issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples, saying such weddings violated Alabama's constitution. The order caused a storm of confusion and questions, and while the dust has since settled, the questions linger.

Where do these marriages stand in the eyes of the law? What could happen if the U.S. Supreme Court does not rule in favor of same-sex marriage this summer? What could happen if state legislators vote to pass HB 56 — a bill which would prevent religious organizations from providing "accommodations, privileges, services, or goods" related to marriages they object to.

As far as the legal status of their marriage is concerned, Tori and Shanté aren't worried.

"If you were married in those two weeks, you are legally married," Tori said. "But now it's not legal (for same-sex couples to get married) here, so it's kind of like we took a baby step and a half forward, and a whole step back," she added.

Jessie Odell, who was married in Jefferson County as one of the first same-sex male couples married in the state, said he believes the marriages will stand unless the state invalidates the licenses and that the U.S. Supreme Court wouldn't allow that.

There seems to be a general consensus that the marriages of the same-sex couples who were married during those two weeks are legal — for now.

"The Alabama Supreme Court order did not rule that those marriages were improper," said Derek Johnston, who represented the Alabama Citizen Action Program which petitioned the Alabama Supreme Court to halt the issuance of marriage licenses to same sex couples.

Johnston said the Alabama Supreme Court said that a federal judge's ruling saying same-sex marriages were legal in the state violated Alabama's constitution, and the judges should not perform marriages.

"But it did not go another step and say these marriages that have been taking place are unlawful," he said.

Erin Dunagan, staff attorney with the clerks office of the Supreme Court of Alabama, said that ultimately whether the marriages are legal hasn't been decided.

"Ultimately it's an issue that could be presented to the court," she said. "Until then the probate judges and the people who got those licenses have to proceed on their best review, until it's litigated ..."

Johnston agrees that the Alabama Supreme Court didn't technically rule one way or the other on the legal validity of those marriages.

He believes the marriages are likely in limbo until the U.S. Supreme Court reaches a decision.

"They are (in limbo). If one of the spouses dies then it's going to be a really big question for probate court," he said. "Ultimately what the U.S. Supreme Court does will sort that out for us. If the United States Supreme Court rules that same sex couples can marry, then I think those marriages would be valid.

"If they were to uphold traditional marriage statutes, then those marriages would be invalid because they wouldn't have had the capacity to get married to begin with."

And while Alabama same-sex couples wait to see what happens on a national level to see the status of their marriages, they're also watching how HB 56 could affect them even if their marriages are upheld.

"It's nerve-wracking," Shanté said. Tori frequently travels across the state for work. The couple worries about what could happen if the bill passed and she were to get in an accident.

"If something were to happen and I were to go check on Tori, I would not be able to get information," Shanté said. "That to me is disturbing ... It just seems like to me the state is saying, 'Well get married if you want to, but you'll never be able to enjoy the daily luxuries of everybody else.'"