Spanish judge suspended for discrimination against lesbian parents

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A Spanish judge has suspended from work after attempting to stop a lesbian adopting her wife’s child.

Same-sex couples are permitted to adopt children in Spain, and gay marriage was legalised there in 2005.

South east Murcia’s Superior Justice Court suspended Judge Fernando Ferrin Calamita for two years, and ordered that he pay the woman £5,778 in compensation.

The woman in question had been trying to adopt her partner’s child, born after their marriage three years ago.

Ferrin attempted to stop the adoption, saying that he feels he acted in the child’s best interest, and will appeal against his suspension.

This is not the first time Judge Ferrin has come under scrutiny for his handling of cases involving lesbians.

In February this year, Judge Ferrin was suspended for his handling of a divorce case in which a woman was unfaithful to her husband with another woman.

Ferrin ordered the woman to choose between lesbian lover and her daughters, because “a homosexual environment threatened their education,” and was suspended pending an investigation into his actions.

The woman was faced with the impossible choice after her husband discovered her in a compromising position with her female lover.

The woman’s husband filed for divorce and was awarded custody of the couple’s two daughters, after “proving” his wife was a lesbian.

“The mother will have to chose between her daughters and her new partner,” Judge Ferrin ruled in June 2007.

“It’s impossible that two homosexual parents can give a child complete education.”

The Spanish Federation of Gays, Lesbians, Transsexuals and Bisexuals said the case went against basic human rights:

“There has been no case of it’s kind since the arrival of legal gay marriage in Spain, and the law states that the custody of a child should be decided independently of the sexual orientation of the parent.”

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