Final respect for domestic partners

Tim Reardon and his partner, Eric, made sure to have all of their legal documents in order when their daughter, Tess, came into their lives. Three months after welcoming their baby girl, Eric was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. A few years later Eric died, and Tim was told by the medical examiner and the cremation society that he didn’t have the right to determine what to do with Eric’s remains.

“I felt betrayed and angry,” Reardon told the House Health Care and Human Services Policy and Oversight Committee March 19.

HF454, sponsored by Rep. Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul), would add domestic partners to the list of those able to determine the disposition of remains. It was approved and now awaits action by the House Civil Justice Committee. A companion, SF341, sponsored by Sen. Yvonne Prettner Solon (DFL-Duluth), awaits action by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“The ability to carry out the final wishes of your loved ones is somewhat of a sacred duty,” Murphy said. The change would eliminate costly legal documents that are ineffective, she said.

There are many stories across the state of same sex couples that have drawn up documents but they don’t provide the same protections as marriage would for a heterosexual couple, said Laura Smidzik, executive director of Project 515, an organization that aims to ensure that same sex couples and their families have equal rights under Minnesota law.