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The Idaho Supreme Court had concluded that a second-parent adoption doesn’t require that the parties be married to each other. That decision has cleared the way for a Boise lesbian to adopt the two boys, ages 12 and 15, that have thought of her as their parent since their birth. Up to now, like many same-sex families, the boys only had one legal parent.

After the couple’s marriage in California last year, they petitioned for the non-biological spouse to legally adopt the two boys, but they were denied by Ada County Magistrate Cathleen MacGregor Irby, who ruled that the couple must be in a legally recognized union.

Yesterday, in an unanimous decision, the Idaho Supreme Court found the language in Idaho Code § 16-1501 – that ‘any person’ may adopt a minor child – plainly allows adoptions by same-sex couples. “[A]ny adult person” cannot possibly be construed to mean “any married adult person,” the court determined.

Adoption cases are usually under seal, but the couple, Darcy Drake Simpson and Rene Simpson, came forth to raise awareness about the problems faced by families headed by same-sex couples.

Bill Mauk, an attorney for the couple said the case would set a precedent for adoption not just by gay couples, but also for grandparents, aunts and uncles, and others.

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Carrie Stone