Computer Science Research Opportunities in Sustainability bryant Randal E. Bryant.
Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
-
Upload
equality-case-files -
Category
Documents
-
view
224 -
download
0
Transcript of Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
1/6
S R H GOODFR IEND
ND
SUZANNE
BRYANT
PLAINTIFFS
VS.
DANA
DEBEAUVOIR TRAVIS
COUNTY CLERK
DEFEND NT
NO.
IN
THE
DISTRICT
COURT
OF TRAVIS COUNTY TEXAS
JUDI I L DISTRICT
P L I N T I F F S O R I G I N L
P E T I T I O N
N D
P P L I C T I O N
F O R T E M P O R RY R E S TR IN I N G
O R D E R
TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF SA ID COURT:
Plaintiffs Sarah Goodfriend and Suzanne Bryant file this Original Petition and
Application for Injunctive Relief againstDefendantDanaDeBeauvoir.
I.
Plaintiffs Goodfriend and Bryant are a same-sex couple who desire to get married. United
States District Judge Orlando Garcia has ruled that the Texas ban on same-sex marriages is
unconstitutional, illegal, and unenforceable. On February 17, 2015, the Honorable Guy Herman,
Probate Judge, Travis County, Texas, issued an Order expressly finding that Texas Family Code
§§ 2.401, and 6.204 b , and Artic le I, § 32
of
the Texas Constitution are unconstitutional insofar
as they restrict marriage in the State ofTexas to the union of a man and woman and prohibit the
creation or recognition
of
marriage to same-sex couples, because such restrictions and
prohibitions violate the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause
of
the Fourteenth
Amendment
to the Uni ted States Cons ti tu t ion.
Plaintiffs
have therefore asked Defendant
DeBeauvoir to issue a marriage license to allow Plaintiffs to
m rry
Basedupon her concerns
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
2/6
about the Texas
statutory
and constitutional prohibitions
against
same-sex
marriage—including
Texas Family Code §§ 2.001,2.012, and6.204, andin Article I, § 32of the TexasConstitution-
Defendant DeBeauvoir has
told
Plaintiffs that
she
cannot
issue
thema
marriage
license,
unless
and until
aCourt orders her to do
so.
Thedenial
of
amarriage
license,
based on
those statutory
andconstitutional prohibitionsagainstsame-sexmarriage, violates Plaintiffs constitutional
rights under the Due Process and Equal Protectionclausesof the United States Constitution.
Accordingly, Plaintiffs request
that
this
Court
issue an immediate Temporary Restraining Order
granting the reliefnecessaryto allowDefendantDeBeauvoirto issue a
marriage
license.
As theUnited
States
Supreme
Court has held,
the freedom tomarry haslongbeen
recognized
asone
of
thevitalpersonal rights essential to the orderly
pursuit ofhappiness
by
free
men. oving v. irginia 388U.S. 1
(1967).
The Texas statutory andconstitutional prohibitions
against same-sex
marriage
denyPlaintiffs the opportunity to exercise that fundamental
personal
freedom. Current Texas lawpromotes the view thatsame-sex
relationships
and families are
inferior; discriminates
against
homosexuals; demean[s]
Plaintiffs and
other
same-sex couples;
andtreats Plaintiffs and other same-sex
couples
as second-class citizensby tell[ing] those
couples,
and
all
the
world,
thattheir [prospective] marriages are unworthy
of
recognition.
ee United tates
v. Windsor
133
S. Ct. 2675,2693-96 (2013).
Plaintiffs inability to obtain issuance ofamarriage license is also causing
Plaintiffs
ongoing,
irreparable loss
ofactual and
potential
benefits otherwise available under the law,
including financial
losses that are
not capable
ofbeing
calculated with
reasonable
certainty, and
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
3/6
including
but not limited to
depriving Plaintiffs
of
intestacy
rights;
homestead
rights; the
potential
rights
of
spousal
maintenance
and community-property presumption; right
of
a
surviving spouse to pursue remedies for possible wrongful death; and spousal evidentiary
privileges.
Additionally, Plaintiff
Goodfriend
has
been diagnosed
with
and received
extensive
treatment for ovarian cancer, a life-threatening illness, with allof the inevitable, attendant stress
and
disruption of life
and family;
thus, her
future remains
veryuncertain.
IV
Plaintiffs haveno adequate remedyat lawto obtain a
marriage
licenseandto remedythat
ongoing
violation
of
the
United States Constitution. Unless
this
Court
grants
an
immediate
TRO,
the violations
of
Plaintiffs fundamental constitutional rights will continue on a daily basis, and
will
cause
ongoing, imminent, and irreparable damage to Plaintiffs.
Therefore, Plaintiffs request that this Courtimmediately (i) issue a Temporary
Restraining
Order to
prevent
the
unconstitutional violation of
Plaintiffs right to obtain a
marriage
license;
(ii) seta
bond
in
accordance
withTex. R.
Civ.
P.
684; iii)
setthis
matter
for
Temporary Injunction hearing, and
then
for trial
on
Permanent Injunction hearing;
and (iv)atthe
conclusion
of
such
hearings, grant
temporary and
permanent
injunctive relief,and
grant
all
additional relief
to
which
Plaintiffs
are entitled
Respectfully submitted,
HERRING
IRWIN
L L P
1411 West Avenue Suite 100
Austin Texas 78701
(512)320-0665
1Tex.
Probate Code
§§ 38,45.
2Tex. Const.,
art.
16, § 52.
3
Tex. FamilyCode §§3.003,7.001, 7.003, 8.051.
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
4/6
512)
519-7580-FAX
Email:
Charles Herring, Jr.
State Bar No. 0953410
Jess M. Irwin II I
State
ar No. 1 04 25 7
CATHERINE
A.
MAUZY
State
ar No.
13239400
Mauzy Tucker PLLC
1717
West
6th Street Suite 315
Austin,
Texas
78703
512 474-1493
512 479-7910
Brian Thompson
State Bar
No.
24051425
HOPPER
MIKESKA, PLLC
4
West
th
Street Suite 4 8
Austin, Texas 78701
512 615-6195
512)
610-1306-FAX
Email: [email protected]
ATTORNEYS OR PLAINTIFFS
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
5/6
y
THE ST TE
OF
TEX S
COUNTY OF TR VIS
VERIFIC TION
BEFORE ME, the
undersigned
Notary Public,
on this day personally Sarah Goodfriend,
who being by me duly
sworn on
her
oath
deposed
and said that
she
has read
Plaintiffs' Original
Petition and Application for
Temporary
Restraining
Order,
and that the facts
stated
therein are
within her personal knowledge andarc true and correct.
_':xXv Cjor^-ifiACL^
<
Sarah Goodfr iend
SUBSCRIBED
AND
SWORN
TO
BEFORE
ME
on
this
jg^day
of
February
2015
to
certify which witness my hand and official seal.
4 &S& NICOLE M H LLI Y
K'Wfcs^l
Notary Public.
State
of Texas
W-.AN.-V/ MyCommission Expires
&& *
March 22, 2018
My Commission Expires:
3 JQ ft
NOT RY PU LIC
-
ST TE OF TE
-
8/9/2019 Goodfriend and Bryant Petition for TRO (Travis County)
6/6
SARAH GOODFRIEND AND
S U Z A N N E
RY NT
PLAINTIFFS
V S
DANA DEBEAUVOIR TRAVIS
C OU N TY C LE RK
D E F E N D A N T
NO
O R D E R
IN
TH E D IS TRI CT
COURT
OF TRAVIS COUNTY TEXAS
J U D IC I A L D I ST R IC T
Plaintiffs Goodfriend
and Bryant in the
above styled
and numbered action
are
seeking an
immediate Temporary
Restraining
Order to
prohibit the defendant from continuing
to enforce
prohibitions
against issuance of
marriage
licenses to same sex persons.
Given the
time urgency
and the other circumstances in this case, and the ongoing violations of Plaintiffs constitutional
rights
the
Court
has
concluded that good
cause exists
to allow filing
ofthe
pleadings
in
this
matterin paper form rather than by e-filing, and to permit filing directly with the Court in
accordance with Tex. R. Civ. P. 21 f) 4)C) and 74.
It
is s o Orde red
SIGNED this the
day of February. 2014