A Mess in Texas: M-I-L battles transgender wife for firefighter benefits

This has to be one of the most amazing testimonies to a legal system that is removed from reality. In this case, the mother of a Texas firefighter who died performing his duty is suing to prevent his wife from death benefits and access to bank accounts, etc. Apparently, in Texas, gender is determined by chromosomal makeup at birth, so the mother thinks the marriage should be declared invalid and determined to be a same-sex marriage.

It is interesting, because the article mentions a case where a woman had a sex change from being born a man, and sought a marriage license to marry another woman. . .which, under Texas interpretation of the law, would allow the women to marry since one had been born a man.

Confused yet?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38371901/ns/us_news/

"The family of a southeast Texas firefighter killed in a July 4 blaze has sued to void his marriage to his transgender widow and prevent her from getting his death benefits because she was born a man and Texas doesn't recognize same-sex marriages.

The attorney for the mother of Thomas Araguz III said Thursday that the firefighter only learned of his wife's gender history and after he found out, he moved out of their home and planned to end the marriage.

But a tearful Nikki Araguz said her marriage was not a fraud.

"I'm absolutely devastated about the loss of my husband. I'm horrified at the horrendous allegations accusing me of fraud. They are absolutely not true," Araguz, 35, told reporters during a brief statement at a news conference.

Thomas Araguz died while battling a blaze at an egg farm in Boling, about 55 miles southwest of Houston. The 11-year veteran of the Wharton Volunteer Fire Department was trapped by falling debris in a burning production building."

It looks to me like the state of Texas fu*ked up - there is no requirement to prove gender at the time of securing a marriage license other than a birth certificate. So how can they throw some case about chromosonal makeup into the mix? And doesn't this conflict with how the federal government views legally-changed gender?

What an absolute mess.