The court ruled Friday in the case of a Lincoln lesbian who wants her domestic partner to adopt her son.
The boy was born in 1997 after his mother became pregnant through artificial insemination. He has lived with his mother and her partner since birth.
The court ruled that the boy cannot be adopted because the mother has not relinquished her parental rights.
"With the exception of the stepparent adoption, the parent or parents possessing existing parental rights must relinquish the child" before an adoption can take place, the unsigned opinion said. The mother's partner can't be considered a stepparent because the women cannot legally marry.
In a strongly worded dissent, Judge John Gerrard said the "issue in this case is whether Nebraska law permits an adoption when the adoptive parent is not married to the minor child's biological parent."
"I believe that it does," he said.
Deputy Attorney General Steve Grasz said the ruling does not necessarily preclude a gay couple from adopting a child whose parent or parents already have relinquished parental rights.
"That question was left open," he said.
Amy Miller, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union who argued the case, said the ACLU has not decided whether to ask the court to rehear the case.
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On The Net:
American Civil Liberties Union:
www.aclu.org/
Nebraska Attorney General:
www.nol.org/home/ago/
Nebraska Supreme Court:
court.nol.org/
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