| Battle over sex laws may not be
over By Beth DeFalco Both sides of the debate to repeal the state's century-old sex laws agree about one thing: It was never about enforcement; it was always about the message. Religious conservatives argued to keep on the books what they saw as moral guidelines, while civil rights groups demanded an end to laws that they called discriminatory and that they say very few, if any, could follow. Tuesday, Gov. Jane Hull signed a bill to get rid of laws dating to 1901 that made sodomy, oral sex and living together out of wedlock illegal. She criticized "extremists on both sides of the issue" for vilifying each other and acknowledged that she would also be judged. Her constituents are seeing to that. "It says she does not stand behind the teachings of God," said Scott Stowe of Glendale, one of about 6,000 people who e-mailed Hull urging a veto. "She did a violation of God's word and will have to answer to him." The Center for Arizona Policy, a Christian group that tried to kill the measure, was disappointed, too. "We came within an eyelash of vetoing the bill, and that says something," said Len Munsil, head of the organization. Though the bill is signed, not everybody is giving up hope that the state can still send a message on morality. Sen. David Peterson, a Mesa Republican who first suggested getting signatures to place a referendum on the ballot to stop the repeal, said today that he has been "invigorated" by calls supporting the idea. Although Munsil's group said it won't help with a referendum, Peterson is talking with other organizations about the idea. Bishop Donald R. Logan, a Scottsdale resident and head of the state office for the Church of God, said he would support a referendum. "We were very unhappy that those laws were removed, even though they are not honored all the time," he said. "If we give into everything, after awhile we will have nothing left." But not all the feedback has been critical of Hull. Some constituents have written thank-you notes. Ann Rupert of Phoenix plans to join that group. She said that she had no idea that she was breaking the law by living with her boyfriend. "Just because we don't have a certificate that says we're married doesn't mean we're not," she said. Reporter Kelly Ettenborough contributed to this article.Reach the reporter at beth.defalco@arizonarepublic.com
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