Del. bill looks to remove homosexuality from marital misconduct

Homosexuality and lesbianism have long been included in the definition of marital misconduct.

Meaning that an unhappy individual in a marriage would be able to claim that their spouse was gay or lesbian to end the union.

House Bill 320, which passed the House today, would remove homosexuality as grounds for a divorce.

According to Delaware law, misconduct is defined as behavior by a spouse so that is so destructive that a person filing for divorce could not reasonably be expected to continue in the relationship.

“A spouse saying that their other spouse was gay or lesbian, or calling them homosexual was done really to inflict pain,” said Steve Elkins, the director of CAMP Rehoboth. “It cannot be used as anything that is seen as less than normal for any other couple.”

Legislators told us that this was a housecleaning bill. In 2013 Governor Markell signed legislation that legally recognized same-sex marriages in the state.