Gay Dad gets jail for telling son about his sexuality

yellum

Tennessee court to reconsider gay dad's hush order
The American Civil Liberties Union said today that it has convinced the Court of Appeals of Tennessee to reconsider a lower court order preventing a gay father from "exposing" his son to his gay partner.

"We are very pleased that the appeals court has agreed to reconsider its decision in this case," said Hedy Weinberg, Executive Director of the ACLU of Tennessee. During his divorce, the lower court judge issued a restraining order barring the father, Joe Hogue, from "taking the child around or otherwise exposing the child to his gay lover(s) and/or his gay lifestyle."

In September of 2002, the judge found Hogue in contempt and sentenced him to two days in jail after Hogue's ex-wife complained that Hogue told his son that he was gay. The judge also significantly reduced Hogue's visitation with his son and gave the ex-wife all decision-making power over the son.
ACLU Press Release

Beruthiel

land of the free

so basically if you say your gay it diminishes your mental capacity and intelligence to such a degree that you cannot think well enough to have a say in your childs up bringing :rolleyes:

yellum

The ACLU is trying to get the ruling overturned. More here

vibe666

did it say how old the son was?

i.e. just a toddler, or old enough to be making his own mind up about who he sees?

thinking about it, it's not really a valid question is it. if he's too young to make the decision then it's not likely to affect him, if he's old enough to make the choice then the court (or the mother) have no business deciding what he should and shouldn't see.

i just andswered my own question didn't I! :rolleyes:

waaay too early!

uberwolf

I misinterprted the title at first, thought jail for an insult was a bit harsh! Bible belt eh? Although this sounds extraordinary even by their standards.

yellum

Changed thread title.

BuffyBot

Oh dear..it really does make you wonder about the good old USA sometimes...

gobby

silly yanks. when will they learn?

Mercury_Tilt

This post has been deleted.

yellum

Tennessee Appeals Court Says You Can't Treat Gay People Differently in Deciding Child Custody and Visitation

Full Ruling here:
http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/041/hoguec.pdf

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 24, 2004

Contact:
Paul Cates, (212) 549-2568
Cell, (917) 566-1294

NASHVILLE - The Tennessee Court of Appeals this evening struck down a court order that told a gay parent not to do anything which "exposes" his son to "the gay lifestyle," according to the American Civil Liberties Union which represented the parent. The court went on to say that "[n]either gay parents nor heterosexual parents have special rights," and that courts should follow the same principles in placing limits on visitation and custody for both gay and straight parents.

The decision came in the case of Joseph Hogue, who was sentenced to two days in jail in September 2002 for telling his son that he is gay. The judge who imposed the sentence ruled that Hogue had violated an earlier order the judge had made prohibiting him from "exposing the child to...his gay lifestyle." Today, the Court of Appeals said that the order was so unspecific that it could not be enforced.

"This is a significant decision for gay and lesbian parents," said Ken Choe, a staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union's Lesbian and Gay Rights Project. "Courts have no business telling parents how to raise their children, and they especially have no business telling parents to be dishonest with their kids."

In January, the appeals court cleared Hogue of contempt because telling his son that he is gay was not part of the restraining order. However, the court went on to say that the restraining order itself was valid. Following a request by the ACLU, the court reversed that decision today.

"One of the great things about this decision is that it makes it clear there are no double standards," said ACLU of Tennessee cooperating attorney Sam Felker of Bass, Berry & Sims. "Courts will have to follow the same principles for child custody and visitation for gay parents as they do for straight parents. The fact that a parent is gay will no longer be an issue."

banquo

this is serious? christ. id like to ask the judge what quality they felt this guy lacked to be a parent.

XtremeLpool2k4

i think that was just rediculous, what will they do next, "jail a cup of coffee for having too much milk" - ok i took that to the extremes lol