Two men in British prison married each other this weekend, the first same-sex marriage between inmates in the country's history. In an unlikely, but oddly heartwarming twist, both men are in prison for homophobic crimes.
The brief ceremony took place in jail, and was attended by a few of the men's relatives and several fellow inmates along with four guards (who were invited as guests). The New York Daily News reports the wedding ended with a shared slice of cake and a kiss. The two men will not be allowed to share a cell.
Marc Goodwin, a 31-year-old prisoner at Full Sutton Prison in East Yorkshire, got a life sentence in 2007 for beating a man to death in what was described by police at the time as a homophobia-driven attack. His new husband, Mikhail Gallatinov, 40, murdered a man he met on a gay chatroom in 1997, and was also sentenced to life.
Britain began allowing legal same-sex marriage in 2014, and according to a 1983 law, inmates in England have the right to marry.
A source told The Guardian that the two men met, and consummated their relationship, in the prison library. “These two guys were on separate wings at Full Sutton and used to meet — and have sex — in the prison library."
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