By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
David Dudley:
"If they finally put it through,
we'll be back."

David Dudley, 39, and Edward Koh, 38, were turned away at the counter, but said they would return to Hawaii to be married in a "simple civil ceremony" before a judge next year. Dudley said they considered postponing their planned departure last night but decided against it.

"If they finally put it through, we'll be back," said Dudley. "It will be a good excuse to visit paradise again."

He said they didn't time their visit to mesh with the anticipated court ruling. "We visit Hawaii frequently. We have been watching the case for years."

Dudley and Koh, co-owners of four video stores, have been together for 10 years.

"For us, it just means we get the same legal sanctions that all other couples that are married get. If one of us should die, the other would have the right to inherit.

"If one should get ill, the other could visit in hospital and not be thrown out by family members. That wouldn't happen to us, but it has happened to other people."

He said they haven't had any negative reaction from family and friends on their plan to marry.

"I talked to friends in Palm Springs this afternoon, and they just said 'good luck.'

"We live in Boston, in one of the most liberal states in the country. In that area, we expect no problems at all. I wouldn't want to live in Indiana."

A third man went to the marriage license counter yesterday, seeking to pick up an application for a license for a same-sex marriage.

Patrick Johnston, Health Department spokesman, said the requests were denied because the state attorney general asked the department not to honor them while further legal maneuvers are under way.