The commonwealth were required to start issuing marriage licenses to all couples, including samesex couples. And it wasnt long before two young women from centerville arrived here, determined to take advantage of this historic opportunity. 26yearold jennifer and erika turner spent 20 minutes inside the courthouse filling out their marriage license paperwork. They emerged to find a reverend from the Arlington Unitarian Universalist Church ready to perform their ceremony and decided to go ahead with it. So before a crowd of reporters, cameras and activists, the young couple was married, becoming one of the first samesex couples in virginia to do so. Now earlier on the same plaza, attorney general mark herring celebrated, and spoke about the significance of todays court inaction that allows samesex marriages to begin in virginia. This is the outcome that we have hoped for. It is the outcome we have fought for and it is the outcome that the constitution requires. Todays decision will chang
How are you going to celebrate . Im probably going to have to go home and tell our parents. Do you wish your family was here . We are still planning to have the ceremony in august. We know that well be able to celebrate more with our family and friends. Our parents have encouraged us that when the time brought itself upon it, dont pass it up. This older samesex couple who met the younger couple paid for their marriage license. Weve been married for eight years and together for 33 and we wish we could have done this here when we got married. So they are standing. What was it like coming out and getting married in front of the world right here . We are both two very shy people. Really . It was actually very we made that decision because i think people should know there are people waiting. Erica and jennifer were planning to get married in d. C. Next august. But when they heard the news, they couldnt pass up the opportunity to get married in their own state. What is the first thing they w