Miami judge rules against Florida gay adoption ban

[Matt Algren]

FINALLY. It's been awhile since we've had good news.

MIAMI - A Miami Dade Circuit judge ruled today that a gay man and his partner should be able to adopt the two foster children they have raised for four years.

Circuit Judge Cindy S. Lederman "these children are thriving. These words we don't often hear within these walls. That's uncontroverted," said Circuit Judge Cindy S. Lederman.

"They're a good family. They're a family in every way except in the eyes of the law. These children have a right to permanency," the judge said. "The only real permanency is adoption in the home where they are thriving.

"There is no rational basis to preclude homosexuals from adopting," Lederman continued.

When he heard those words, Frank Martin Gill patted his eyes with a folded white tissue.

In 2004, the state encouraged Gill and his unidentified male partner to provide a foster home for two boys. Gill wants to become their adopted father.

"Today I've cried my first tears of joy in my life," said Gill, 47, a flight attendant who lives in North Miami. "We are elated." Gill added: "I wasn't here to make history. I was here to do the best thing for a 4- and an 8-year-old."

A lawyer from the Attorney General's Office, who is representing the state Department of Children and Families, said the case would be appealed.

Some states, such as Mississippi and Utah, prevent gays from adopting by using laws that prohibit unmarried couples from adopting. But Florida expressly targeted gays with its 1977 law, enacted during former Miss America Anita Bryant's anti-homosexual crusade.

Florida Statute 63.042 states: "No person eligible to adopt under this statute may adopt if that person is a homosexual." They can be state-appointed foster parents. They can be named permanent guardians. But adoption is not allowed.

Gill's attorney, Robert Rosenwald of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, said an appeals court and the possibly the Florida Supreme Court would be asked to address the ban on gay adoption.