01:43 PM PDT on Tuesday, July 27, 2004

By CATHY KIYOMURA / KING 5 News

KING Beth Reis and Barbara Steel were among the same sex couples denied a marriage license.

SEATTLE - Last March, a half dozen same-sex couples applied for and were denied marriage licenses in King County.

Beth Reis and Barbara Steel were among the same sex couples denied a marriage license. Now, they are suing King County.

"There is an issue of dignity for us, for us and our children and our grandchildren, that our relationship doesn't count before the law," said Reis.

On Tuesday, a King County Superior Court judge heard arguments in the case.

"All the courts agree that marriage is a fundamental right it is within the protection of Washington's due process clause," plaintiff's attorney Brad Bagshaw told the court.

"Same sex couples, like the plaintiffs, get many fundamental rights under the constitution. They enjoy the right to association. They enjoy the right to privacy. I think that's clear and certainly not something that we're contesting. But the authority doesn't support the conclusion that there is a constitutional, fundamental right to same sex marriage," King County Deputy Prosecutor Darren Carnell told the court.

"I hope the court will say we be allowed to have what feels very much to us like a marriage legally recognized," said Reis.

A decision in the case is expected in seven to 10 days.

Gay couples who've been denied marriage licenses have also sued the state of Washington. They hope the case will be heard by the state supreme court.