Bridgeport grapples with city hall marriage glut, unregulated justices of the peace By Brian Lockhart, Staff Writer BRIDGEPORT — Councilman Jorge Cruz has a simple solution to the issue of justices of the peace conducting business in the Margaret Morton Government Center on Broad Street. "Don't do marriages at city hall. Come up with another place," Cruz said. Mayor Joe Ganim's administration has begun grappling with problems involving weddings at the government center, where couples go to obtain a marriage license from the vital records office off of the first-floor lobby. Ganim's new chief administrative officer, Thomas Gaudett, on Monday issued a memorandum warning municipal employees who are also justices of the peace or religious officials that they cannot officiate over couples' unions while on the clock. Gaudett said he was prompted to act by complaints he and his predecessor, Janene Hawkins, received about several Bridgeport staffers, who he declined to name. But ...
Brewer lawmaker revives effort to ban child marriage in Maine The legislation by Rep Kevin O'Connell is part of a broader push to eliminate child marriage in the United States, and elsewhere, to prevent the exploitation of minors, especially girls. By Randy Billings, Staff Writer A Brewer lawmaker is trying again to end child marriages in Maine. State law allows 16- and 17-year-olds to wed with parental consent, similar to state laws in about half of the country. But a bill proposed by Rep. Kevin O'Connell, a Democrat, would prohibit anyone under 18 from getting married, whether parents approve or not. The bill is part of a broader effort to eliminate child marriage in the United States, and elsewhere, to prevent the exploitation of minors, especially girls. A small but growing number of states have eliminated the right of minors to marry under any circumstances. O'Connell proposed a similar bill ...
Justices of the Peace: The Legacy Continues Saul Haffner died in 2017. He was 87. He served on the RTM, was a member of the Y’s Men, and taught photography and writing at the Senior Center and Norwalk Community College. Saul was a US Army veteran. He was an engineer who worked on NASA’s Gemini program, and a professor of business and marketing at Sacred Heart University. But he is best known as a justice of the peace. In fact, he may have been the nation’s foremost authority on the subject. In 2009, I profiled him for “06880.” Saul and his wife Barbara Jay founded the Justice of the Peace Association (JPus) in 2001. At the dawn of the internet age, they wanted to connect couples and officiants in a personalized fashion. An early advocate of marriage equality, he and Barbara created professional conferences on all aspects of a JP’s role. Saul and ...
Virtual Conference for Marriage Officiants on March 13, 2021 In anticipation of the Justice of the Peace Association’s Virtual Conference on March 13, 2021, JPus sent out variations of a press release highlighting member and speakers at the event. Following is a compilation of some that received attention. The Hartford Courant: March 5, 2021 Justices of the Peace gathering virtually for conference STATEWIDE — Justices of the Peace will be gathering virtually on March 13 to boost their ceremony-performing skills and keep up with policies impacting their services. The Fairfield based Justice of the Peace Association is hosting the conference, which runs from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Visit www.JPus.org for more information. Participants from throughout Connecticut and other New England states will hear a panel discussion between Fairfield State Representative Cristin McCarthy-Vahey and legislators from New Hampshire and Massachusetts addressing matters that impact officiants — including online officiants, virtual ceremonies and ...
The following op-ed was published in the New Hampshire Union Leader on July 17, 2020. It calls for Governor Sununu to issue an executive order to undo the temporary marriage officiant authorization. Loretta Jay: Amendment undermines marriages... literally ON THE second to last day of the session, the New Hampshire Senate tacked an unrelated amendment onto a guaranteed-to-pass bill. This move, done without notifying constituents, gives anyone temporary authorization to officiate a marriage. This will increase the risk of coronavirus spread. The House passed the bill the next day. New Hampshire needs Governor Sununu to step in and halt this irresponsible action. Unlike professional marriage officiants, lay officiants are careless; up to 90% make serious errors. New Hampshire is taking extraordinary measures to stay safe during the pandemic. It is counter-intuitive to compound the danger by suddenly loosening rules -- especially around high-risk group gatherings. States that have lay officiants ...
