As many of you may know, Nikki Aruguz was married to a Wharton, TX firefighter who was killed in the line of duty.  (Wharton is a little town outside Houston.) Under normal circumstances, the death benefits would have been split between Nikki and the firefighter's two sons from a previous marriage. The ex-wife and family sued after finding out about Nikki's medical history.

Today, a judge ruled the marriage invalid as a matter of law.  More here:  http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7579628.html 

Nikki’s statement

Nikki released this statement following the ruling:

“Both myself and my family are grateful for the out-pouring of understanding, kindness, sympathy, and support over the past year. I am totally devastated by the court ruling. At this time I have no comment for the media, but will be issuing a statement shortly after I consider my options.”

More here

While the ruling will be appealed — and since the full text has not been released yet — we don't know the extent of the impact… whether it will uphold and expand on the previous Littleton case that locks in gender identity at birth based on gonads, genitalia and chromosomes… or whether it will be applied (if upheld) narrowly based on other factors.  Stay tuned…

And please note that — if you read the interview in the second link, Nikki identifies as a woman and uses the term “transsexual” when referring to herself… this is why I used her self-identification terminology in the title.