Fred McQuire and his late husband George Martinez were married in California this past summer after 45 years together. Martinez, who passed away due to pancreatic cancer attributed to his exposure to Agent Orange while he was serving in the Vietnam War, wanted to marry his long time partner before he passed away. After Martinez’s death, McQuire ran into trouble when he tried to claim death benefits since Arizona does not recognize same-sex marriage. U.S. District Judge John Sedwick ruled that McQuire should be allowed to be listed as Martinez’s spouse on his death certificate. However, McQuire will likely still not be able to collect death benefits due to unrelated regulations. The decision is limited to McQuire’s specific situation, but may signal the outcome of a pending case in Arizona challenging the constitutionality of the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.
See Jacques Billeaud, Man Wins Fight to Get Same-Sex Union Recognized, My San Antonio, Sept. 12, 2014.
Special thanks to Laura Galvan (Attorney, San Antonio, Texas) for bringing this article to my attention.
