Impeachment Threat Over Md. Marriage Opinion

A Maryland lawmaker said he would seek to impeach state attorney general Douglas Gansler over his opinion issued last week that allows the state to recognize same-sex marriages performed out of state.

Gansler issued the long-awaited legal opinion last Wednesday and said that state agencies could immediately begin to acknowledge the rights gay couples have been afforded in states where same-sex marriage is legal. Same-sex marriages cannot be legally performed in Maryland.

While Gov. Martin O’Malley, a Democrat, has not yet offered an opinion on the issue, at least one lawmaker wants to impeach the attorney general over the opinion, according to The Gazette, a Gaithersburg newspaper.

“Del. Donald H. Dwyer Jr. (R-Dist. 31) of Glen Burnie said Gansler's opinion ‘usurps the law’ and that he will seek to impeach the attorney general,” reports The Gazette.

“Dwyer said a 2007 Court of Appeals case that defined marriage as between a man and a woman also stated that issues of Maryland's marriage law were to be determined by the General Assembly.”

The legislator said he planned to bring the impeachment charges to the house floor before the session ends.


Maryland AG Office Says He Can't Be Impeached Over Same-Sex Marriage Opinion

Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler has come under fire from one of the state’s Republican legislators for his opinions about same-sex marriage. Delegate Don Dwyer has been vocal about his desire to see Gansler impeached proclaiming that the AG "usurped the authority of the Maryland General Assembly."

Yesterday, Gansler's office responded with this: “The Maryland Constitution explicitly states that a ‘court of law’ is the forum for proceedings to remove an Attorney General.”