Munster woman in Indiana’s 1st same-sex marriage dies

Niki Quasney, the Munster woman who, along with her wife Amy Sandler, became one of the most prominent figures in the movement last year to legalize same-sex marriage in Indiana, has died. She was 38.

Quasney passed away Thursday, more than five years after she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Quasney and Sandler attracted national attention last spring, when a federal judge granted an emergency request to recognize their Massachusetts marriage, a decision that made them the first — and for a time, only — legally married same-sex couple in the state. The order paved the way for widespread recognition of same-sex couples in Indiana.

“Niki and Amy and their daughters became Indiana’s first family when they bravely joined Lambda Legal’s marriage case, which meant openly sharing very personal and painful parts of their journey together as Niki battled cancer,” Paul Castillo, the Lambda Legal attorney who represented the couple, said in a statement.

“They knew that by coming forward they could help accelerate equality for all same-sex couples in Indiana by demonstrating the urgency of their need for equal dignity.”

Quasney and Sandler were among several couples named in one of five lawsuits filed last year that challenged Indiana’s ban. Those lawsuits came alongside dozens of similar legal challenges filed nationwide after a U.S. Supreme Court decision gave full federal recognition to legally married gay couples in 2013.

Castillo argued on behalf of the couple in front of U.S. District Judge Richard Young last April. Because of Quasney’s terminal illness, Castillo said, the couple needed their out-of-state marriage recognized, so that they could access federal and state safety nets for surviving spouses and their children. The couple also wanted to ensure that Quasney’s marital status on her death certificate reflected her 2013 wedding to Sandler, he said.

In June, Young struck down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage. The case was appealed to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, which upheld Young’s decision.

In a statement to the court, Quasney wrote, “If my life is cut short because of ovarian cancer, I want our children to know that their parents were treated like other married couples in their home state, and to be proud of this. I want to know what it feels like to be a legally recognized family in our community, together with Amy and our daughters.”

On Oct. 6, the U.S. Supreme Court decided to let stand the lower court rulings, effectively making same-sex marriage legal in Indiana and elsewhere.

Quasney is survived by her wife, Sandler, and their two children.

Call Star reporter Jill Disis at (317) 444-6137. Follow her on Twitter: @jdisis.