The people promoting Amendment One in North Carolina described it as supporting the sanctity of marriage. Sadly, many people didn't stop to consider the many effects this poorly worded amendment (or, if they did, they didn't give a shit which is even sadder. One of the many things opponents warned about is the fact the Amendment One voids "other types of domestic unions from carrying legal status, which opponents warn could disrupt protection orders for unmarried couples."
Y'all, I'm sorry to say that this exact thing has already started happening. Last night, there was a call for a domestic disturbance in a small town not far from where I live. When the cops arrived on the scene, they found evidence of a domestic disturbance involving physical violence and one of the involved parties was taken into custody and they headed to the magistrate's office for processing.
Now, in North Carolina, when the police are called to a domestic disturbance and someone is taken into custody, that person can be held for 48 hours to ensure the safety of the injured party. I don't know the specifics of the disturbance the police were called to last night, but I'm sure the injured party was relieved to have at least 48 hours in which they would be safe and could decide what to do.
The problem is, they didn't get those 48 hours. When the police got to the magistrate's office, the magistrate told the police that his hands were tied. Under the new amendment, this was NOT considered a domestic disturbance because the altercation was between a homosexual couple. Since it wasn't a domestic disturbance, the 48 hour hold was not enforced. This means that even if the individual was charged with assault (don't know if that happened) they could still get out almost immediately and their partner was potentially in danger.
Y'all, this isn't fucking fair. It pisses me off that people will be endangered because to the fucked up legislation that is Amendment One. This really makes me so angry and sad that I can't even begin to express it.
