"All the requirements of marriage": a Long Island man continues his fight to have his Vermont civil union recognized in New York two years after his partner died in a hospital.Neal Conrad Spicehandler and John Langan cherished their 15-year partnership, sanctioned in a civil union ceremony in Vermont in November 2000, celebrated by 40 friends and relatives. Then tragedy struck. In February 2002, Spicehandler, 41, was injured by a car in a hit-and-run accident in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. . Suffering a broken leg, tee underwent two surgeries at St. Vincent's Hospital Hospital:
Obstruction of blood flow by an embolus—a substance (e.g., a blood clot, a fat globule from a crush injury, or a gas bubble) not normally present in the bloodstream. Obstruction of an artery to the brain may cause stroke. after the second operation. Believing his partner's death was due to hospital negligence, Langan filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, which the hospital challenged, claiming a civil union in Vermont didn't make Langan a legal spouse in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . But last April, Judge John Dunne Did you mean?
"The state court's decision was a tremendous victory for same-sex couples A same-sex couple is a pair of people of the same gender who pursue a romantic or sexual relationship together. The term "same-sex relationship" may be used when the sexual orientation of participants in a same-sex relationship is not known. in New York and elsewhere," said Adam Aronson, the Lambda Legal Lambda Legal (Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund) is a United States civil rights organization that focuses on gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and those with HIV through impact litigation, education, and public policy work. Defense and Education Fund attorney representing Langan. "For many couples, a Vermont civil union is the strongest legal protection available for their relationship." But the hospital, which would not comment on the case, appealed the ruling, and on January 20, Aronson asked a stale appeals court, to allow the suit to go forward. A ruling is not expected for several weeks. The Advocate talked with Langan, who lives in the Long Island split-level he shared with Spicehandler, about the lawsuit and what it means. This is the two-year anniversary of Conrad's death. Did you anticipate the fight would take this long? No, I didn't. Part of the reason why we got into the civil union was to protect ourselves legally. It never entered my mind that I wouldn't have standing [as a spouse]. Conrad and I were together 15 years. We were so in love with each other. We were, a family. We supported each other in every way. That should be enough. Are you angrier with the man who hit Conrad or the hospital that treated him? My anger is definitely at the hospital. I just think there's no way he should not have wheelchaired out of that hospital. The man who hit him was a sick, distributed man. He hit him, broke his leg. Besides the broken leg, Conrad was just fine. A 41-year-old doesn't go in with a broken leg and not come out alive. Has St. Vincent's ever Explained what happened? They're hush-hush on it. Do you consider your lawsuit to be activist work? That's a role I never wanted. In a perfect world I wouldn't have to be an activist. The stress is unbelievable. You deal with it on a daily basis. And I just want to go home and talk to Conrad about it. I wan to see him come through the door and get his advice. Why pursue this, then? It has to be done. It's just not right, what happened. You know? It's just something that you can't sweep under the rug Verb 1. sweep under the rug - to conceal something in the hopes it won't be discovered by others; "The president tried to sweep the embarrassing incident under the rug" . So what outcome are you hoping for? The hospital has to be accountable. It's the place where you are supposed to go to the best care. Have you moved on--started dating again? [Conrad] was the one. I hope there's another one out there someday. But it's so hard to move on. Everything I do reminds me of him. |
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