Subject: THE TRIAL - DAY 6
From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 1996 13:00:51 -0400

GCNews 9-17-96

THE TRIAL
COVERAGE DAILY OF THE SAME-SEX MARRIAGE TRIAL IN HONOLULU BY GCNEWS AND GLEA
FOUNDATION 

GCNews will create daily reports for the electronic publication with larger
weekly editions each Wednesday.
  The lawsuit’s creator and GLEA Foundation’s Executive Director, William
Woods will provide a daily report on KHVH Radio 830 AM at 6:30 AM.  The daily
report will begin on the second day of the trial.  It will report on the
previous and current days events and issues covered.  The report will include
Debi Hartman, spokesperson for Hawaii’s Future Today, an anti-same-sex
marriage organization.  

DAY SIX:

   Day Six is the second day of the plaintiff’s portion of the trial.  They
will have a total of four witnesses.  It is expected that the closing
arguments will be on Friday.

    Today’s witness was Charlotte Petterson, associate psychology professor
from the University of Virginia.  She was established as an expert in human
development, couples, children with a specialty of same-sex couples and their
children.  She has been widely published in peer review publications, author
of six books, and researcher and teacher.
   She is known for conducting two major studies in this area:  “Bay Area
Family Study and the Contemporary Families Study.  Both related to children
of lesbian mothers with children.
   Important statement that were made or agreed upon:

1.  “This group (children of lesbian mothers) compared with others developed
in normal families.”
2.  “Although within in normal range, both higher symptoms of stress and
well-being were found in children of lesbian mothers.”
3.  “The sexual orientation of the children raised by lesbian mothers was
within the expected range.”
4.  “Gender role behavior was within expected range for age in the sample.
Quite conventional”
5.  “In general these children (birthed after artificial insemination - no
known father) are developing normally.”
6. “None of the different family characteristics (sexual orientation) allowed
for predictability for adjustment. Sexual orientation was not a good
predictor of how children were doing, nor the number of parents in the home.”
7.  “Some children do better in non-bio families than children of bio-parents
in their home.”
8.  When asked: Are there any studies that go another way?  She answered,
“no.”
9.  Any reason to deny marriage to same-sex couples? “No. Indeed I think it
would benefit them and their children.”
 .

   Wednesday’s witness is Dr. David Brodzinsky, associate professor of
developmental and clinical psychology at Rutgers University.  His focus is
expected to be children raised by lesbians, Gay men or same-sex couples and
the development of gender roles.

GCNews is producing daily reports of the trial.   Our reporter has been in
the courtroom from the first gavel.  If you have missed a day of the report,
please contact us at [email-masked] and we will send a copy of that day’s
report directly to you.
     
GCNews requests your input on future daily reports.  Should you have
questions that you would like posed to any of the principals in the trial,
please direct them to GCNews at: EMAIL: [email-masked] or call us at
(808) 532-9000.

Reports every day of the trial.  If you did not get a day, please send
message requesting it.