Tampabay: Relatives, companion to argue for pension

Marrero's sister and Marrero's companion of 10 years made their way through a crowd of mourners outside Sacred Heart Catholic Church before stepping into separate cars.

Mickie Mashburn and the Marrero family have been divided since.

Today they will be on opposite sides of a debate with personal and political ramifications.

Mashburn plans to ask a city board this afternoon to award her Marrero's police pension, which ordinarily goes to a surviving spouse. It's worth about $28,000 a year for the rest of the beneficiary's life.

Marrero's family plans to argue that the money Marrero contributed to the pension -- about $50,000 -- should go to Marrero's estate. They oppose Mashburn's application.

The nine-member Police and Fire Pension Board will consider both sides today, said Chairman Tom Singleton. Because Florida law does not recognize same-sex marriage, the board's attorney says Mashburn is not entitled to the pension. A man and woman living together outside of marriage also would not qualify, Singleton said.

"As a trustee, I've got to follow the law," Singleton said.

To Mashburn's supporters, the law is the problem.

"The law needs to be changed, so that our families are recognized," said Nadine Smith, who heads Equality Florida, a gay advocacy group.

The spouse of an officer killed in the line of duty is entitled to half the officer's salary every year for the rest of the surviving spouse's life. Marrero was paid $55,000 a year, about the same as Mashburn, also a Tampa police officer.

If there is no spouse, the money an officer contributed typically is awarded to the estate, Singleton said.

Mashburn has said she believes Marrero would have wanted her to get the pension and thought Marrero's family would agree. But they don't.

Marrero's family was there when Marrero and Mashburn exchanged vows 10 years ago in a friend's home with about 30 guests. A reception followed.

But family members say they also were there the past five years when the relationship was crumbling. Marrero, they say, was in love with another woman when she was killed.

The other woman in Marrero's life has declined to step forward, prompting Mashburn's lawyer, Danny Castillo, to question whether she exists.

Marrero's family, however, say they know the woman. Maria Marrero, Lois' mother, showed a St. Petersburg Times reporter letters the woman and Marrero exchanged. The reporter also talked to the woman by telephone, but she would not divulge her identity. The woman, who lives in another state, said she and Marrero exchanged vows and rings of their own on April 7, 2000.

In a June 30, 2000, letter to the woman, Marrero wrote: "I gave you my heart and made a promise before you and God that I will always be by your side for better or worse. ... Your loving wife, Lois."

Mashburn's supporters say whether another woman was in Marrero's life does not change the fact that Mashburn and Marrero lived together as a couple.

Smith, the Equality Florida head, calls talk of another woman "insidious" and said it would not be an issue had their union been legally recognized.

Smith sees a double standard: "We won't recognize your marriage, but we will use that as a marker to determine whether your relationship was valid."

Anyone who lives with a domestic partner should have legal protection, lawyers say.

"You should document for the event of a breakup, incapacity or death," said Elizabeth Schwartz, a Miami Beach lawyer specializing in family law.

It is possible for same-sex couples to dissolve their union, Schwartz said. "Whoever did the ceremony usually has provisions."

Frank Gagliano, 38, of Naples, Fla., knows firsthand how important documentation can be.

Ron Pierce, his partner of five years, died in a helicopter crash last year while working as a photojournalist in Deerfield Beach.

Pierce left no will, so everything went to his family, who did not approve of their relationship, Gagliano said.

The family changed the locks on the couple's home, which Pierce owned, and Gagliano had to get a court order to get his belongings. Personal effects, such as photos of the two of them, were gone. "I don't think I've ever stopped grieving," he said.

Marrero apparently left no will, though even that would not affect the pension, Singleton said. He was unsure how a will would affect the awarding of Marrero's pension contributions.

Marrero did not name Mashburn as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy. Castillo, however, said Marrero named Mashburn as the beneficiary of a police union benefit that will pay her the equivalent of a year's pay.

If the Pension Board rejects Mashburn's application, Castillo plans to challenge the decision in court.

The stakes are high for Mashburn, whose position with the Police Department could be in doubt because of an off-duty injury.

Mashburn severely injured a knee two years ago when she was hit by a car while riding a bicycle. Mashburn, a patrol officer, has been assigned to temporary light duty in the detective division the past two years. Officers who do not meet the department's physical requirements can be dismissed.

- Times researcher John Martin contributed to this report.Amy Herdy can be reached at (813) 226-3386 or herdy@sptimes.com.

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