Editing Baker v. Vermont (section)

== Trial court ==
On July 22, 1997, three same-sex couples, who had been denied marriage licenses in the towns of [[Milton, Vermont|Milton]] and [[Shelburne, Vermont|Shelburne]] and the city of [[South Burlington, Vermont|South Burlington]], sued those jurisdictions and the state. They were Stan Baker and Peter Harrigan, Holly Puterbaugh and Lois Farnham, and Nina Beck and Stacy Jolles. Two of the couples had raised children together. The couples sued their respective localities and the state of Vermont, requesting a [[declaratory judgment]] that the denial of licenses violated Vermont's marriage statutes and the state Constitution. The plaintiffs were represented by [[Mary Bonauto]], an attorney with Boston-based [[Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders]], and two Vermont attorneys, Susan Murray and [[Beth Robinson]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Canellos|first=Peter S.|title=Vt. gays sue for right to marry Cite guarantees of state charter|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8434294.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327053848/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8434294.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 27, 2016|access-date=July 12, 2013|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=July 22, 1997}}</ref>{{efn|Robinson later chaired Vermont Freedom to Marry and in 2011 was appointed to the [[Vermont Supreme Court]] by Governor [[Peter Shumlin]].<ref>{{cite news|last=O'Connell|first=Sue |title=Marriage activist named to Vermont Supreme Court|url=http://www.baywindows.com/Marriage-activist-named-to-Vermont-Supreme-Court|access-date=September 22, 2012|newspaper=Bay Windows|date=October 20, 2011}}</ref>}}

The defendants moved to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds that no relief could be legally granted for the plaintiffs' grievances. On December 19 at the trial court in [[Chittenden County, Vermont|Chittenden County]], Superior Court Judge Linda Levitt granted the defendants' motion, ruling that the marriage statutes could not be construed to allow same-sex marriages and that the statutes were constitutional because they served the public interest by promoting "the link between procreation and child rearing". She disagreed with the defendants' contention that "history and tradition" justify the state's interest in preserving marriage.<ref>{{cite news|title=Vt. gay marriage suit dismissed|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=December 20, 1997}}</ref>  The plaintiffs appealed the decision to the [[Vermont Supreme Court]].

On November 3, 1998, voters in Alaska and Hawaii approved referendums in opposition to same-sex marriage.<ref>{{cite news|title=Major Ballot Initiatives|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8507876.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130806234817/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8507876.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 6, 2013|access-date=July 12, 2013|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=November 5, 1998}}</ref>{{efn| Hawaii voters approved a constitutional amendment that allowed the legislature to ban same-sex marriages, while Alaskans backed a constitutional amendment that limited marriage to heterosexual couples.}} Two weeks later, on the eve of oral arguments in ''Baker'' before the Vermont Supreme Court, Tracey Conaty of the [[National Gay and Lesbian Task Force]] said "Right now Vermont, in many ways, is our biggest hope".<ref name=shea>{{cite news |last=Shea|first=Lois R.|title=Same-sex marriage hopes go north Vermont's highest court to get gay couples' case|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=November 17, 1998}}</ref> Discussing the interplay between the courts and public opinion, Greg Johnson, a professor at [[Vermont Law School]], said: "The reason we have some hope here in Vermont is not just because the jurisprudence is good but the body politic is markedly different than in Alaska and Hawaii".<ref name=goldberg>{{cite news|last=Goldberg |first=Carey|title=Vermont Supreme Court Takes Up Gay Marriage|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/11/19/us/vermont-supreme-court-takes-up-gay-marriage.html|access-date=July 26, 2013|newspaper=New York Times|date=November 19, 1998}}</ref>