Media Trail
© 2008 Philadelphia Gay News

Fresno records first same-sex divorce

ABC30 reports two women are believed to be the first same-sex couple in Fresno, Calif. to file for divorce.

The couple got married on June 27 just days after the state Senate legalized gay marriage. Three days later, on June 30, they separated. The couple declined to be interviewed citing privacy issues, but they checked “irreconcilable differences” on their application.

Jason Scott and his husband, Randy, were among the first to marry in Fresno. Scott said the marriage hasn’t changed his life but he fears a few same-sex couples do not understand the obligations of marriage.

“When you get married, you’re really basically becoming almost one entity,” he said. “You’re taking on the responsibilities for the other person.”

Late HIV detection reported in Latinos

DallasNews.com reports Hispanics in Texas are getting tested for HIV later than any other ethnic group, fueling the spread of infection in a segment of the population already seeing a disproportionate number of cases nationwide.

Hispanics make up 15 percent of the U.S. population but accounted for 22 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases in 2006.

The most alarming statistic in Texas may be that 32 percent of Latinos are diagnosed with AIDS only a month after testing HIV-positive, compared with 24 percent each for both blacks and whites.

Late detection delays the opportunity for life-extending drugs.

Hispanics in the United States face a number of unusual challenges in combating the disease, including language barriers, limited access to healthcare, legality issues and cultural mores.

Transgender bank robber convicted

The News Courier reports a federal jury in Huntsville, Ala., has convicted a transgender man of robbing the Alabama Credit Union in Decatur.

On Aug. 5, jurors found 26-year-old Jimmy Maurice Lewis II guilty of federal bank robbery for his role in a November 2007 heist.

Prosecutors believe Lewis wanted to use the money for a sex-change operation.

Lewis is also awaiting trial for bank robberies in Texas and Tennessee.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Lewis, who faces up to 20 years in prison, will be sentenced on Dec. 11.

— Larry Nichols