Can a gay defendant invoke the marital privilege to prevent his partner-spouse from testifying against him in a criminal proceeding? Stephen Signorelli, a defendant in New York is raising the issue.

A gay man charged with helping his lover loot a wealthy school district has asked a judge to rule that state law protecting spouses from having to testify against each other also applies to same-sex partners.

"Mr. Tassone and I have been loving partners for 33 years," Signorelli said in an affidavit, adding that the two had participated in "a solemn religious ceremony" conducted while they were on a Caribbean cruise "to memorialize our relationship and love for one another." The two registered as domestic partners in New York City, where they live, in 2002. "It's our position that the statute should be read gender-neutral," Signorelli's attorney, Kenneth Weinstein, told Newsday. "If a heterosexual couple can assert marital privilege, then a homosexual couple should be able to do the same."

From the facts provided, this does not seem to be a good test case. When both spouses are involved in the criminal scheme, the "crime fraud" exception to the marital privilege kicks in. Maybe there's more to the story.