<![CDATA[Travis judge rules Texas gay-marriage ban unconstitutional]]>A Travis County judge ruled Tuesday that the Texas ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional, but there was no rush to the altar after county officials — scrambling to understand the impact of the judge’s 3 p.m. order — decided against issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, at least for now.
Travis County Probate Judge Guy Herman ruled as part of an estate fight in which Austin resident Sonemaly Phrasavath sought to have her eight-year relationship to Stella Powell deemed to have been a common-law marriage. Powell died last summer of colon cancer.
Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir, who praised Herman for his ruling, said she will confer with county lawyers to determine her options.
“I am scrambling, trying to find out if there is anything I can do. Right now, I think it’s no, but we are checking,” said DeBeauvoir, who in the past has said that she was ready to begin distributing marriage licenses to same-sex couples as soon as allowed by the courts.
Michael Knisely, the lawyer for the siblings who opposed Phrasavath’s claim, said no decision has been made on whether to appeal.
Attorney General Ken Paxton declined an offer to be party to the case and thus is not in a position to appeal.

“Our office is reviewing today’s ruling from Travis County,” Paxton spokeswoman Cynthia Meyer said.

Herman’s ruling came after an hourlong hearing in the Travis County Courthouse. Phrasavath challenged the constitutionality of the prohibition on gay marriage as a first step toward establishing her relationship as a common-law marriage.

Phrasavath and Powell began living together in Austin shortly after Phrasavath proposed in 2007, leading to a marriage ceremony that, though not recognized under Texas law, was performed one year later by a Zen priest in Driftwood southwest of Austin.

Travis County courts became involved after Powell died without a valid will in June, eight months after she was diagnosed with colon cancer, leading to a legal fight over her estate between Phrasavath and two of Powell’s siblings.

“It was never about property rights or about property,” Phrasavath said after the hearing. “At least for me, it was about standing up for my relationship and my marriage. If I didn’t do that, I would absolutely have no voice.”

Phrasavath said she didn’t enter court intending to break new legal ground.

“The alternative was to be silent and do nothing,” she said. “I can’t imagine anyone being married for 6 or 7 years, then having to walk away after losing their spouse and feel like the marriage never happened.”
[/http://www.statesman.com/news/news/travis-judge-rules-gay-marriage-ban-unconstitution/nkC2C/url]

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