PETALUMA, Calif. (AP) – An Episcopal church north of San Francisco has become the latest parish to break ties with the national church regarding same-sex marriage.

Members of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Petaluma voted to formalize the congregation’s split from the Episcopal Church – the U.S. wing of the 77 million-member Anglican family – on Dec. 17.

“The Bible has already spoken regarding homosexuality, and it says it is sinful behavior,” said the Rev. David Miller, rector of the congregation some 40 miles north of San Francisco.

Miller called the vote for separation “overwhelming,” but did not say what percentage of the church’s 240 members approved the break.

The presiding bishop of the 2.3 million-member U.S. denomination, Katharine Jefferts Schori, supports progressive views on women priests and same-sex marriage.

But the Petaluma parish is one of numerous churches seeking to circumvent the U.S. branch in favor of direct representation in England or another more traditional national church abroad.

Earlier last month, the conservative Diocese of San Joaquin took what Bishop John-David Schofield called a first step toward a formal break with the national church in voting to affirm its membership in the worldwide Anglican Communion.

St. John’s is the first Episcopal church in Sonoma County to leave the national body and has renamed itself St. John’s Anglican to make the distinction clear, Miller said.

The Rev. Matthew Lawrence, rector of an Episcopal congregation in nearby Santa Rosa, said he was saddened by the parish’s decision.

“Jesus had nothing to say about homosexuality,” Lawrence said.

HONOLULU (AP) – After five years of rapid growth, the number of medical marijuana users registered with the state has been dropping, according to statistics from the state Department of Public Safety.

To qualify for the program, people are registered by the state after a doctor certifies they have a debilitating medical condition.

About 2,575 people are currently signed up, down from 3,280 in March – a 20 percent drop.

Each year the certificates must be renewed, but people continue to register for the program so they don’t seem to be having trouble getting certified, said Keith Kamita, who oversees the program as administrator of the department’s Narcotics Enforcement Division.

“I think there’s a lot of people who try it and then don’t go back to it,” Kamita said.

Medical marijuana has been used to help a wide range of ailments, including cancer, anorexia, AIDS glaucoma, arthritis and migraines.

It’s unclear why the number of registered medical marijuana patients is dropping, said Pamela Lichty, president of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii. Possible reasons could include the lack of publicity for the program and fewer doctors who are willing to certify patients.

Her group has also led a campaign to encourage lawmakers to move the medical marijuana program to the state Department of Health instead of the Department of Public Safety.

The move could encourage more people to use the program and ease the anxiety of physicians who are asked to certify patients, Lichty said.

More than half of the medical marijuana users are on the Big Island, suggesting that doctors on Oahu and other islands aren’t aware of the potential benefits of marijuana or of the legal protections under the program, Lichty said.

But Kamita said he believes specialists in Honolulu rarely certify patients for marijuana use because they are prescribing other, more effective drugs.

The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, which established a clinic in Honolulu to certify medical marijuana patients, has found relatively few takers. The organization saw only about 200 patients in Hawaii in its first year of operation, said Paul Stanford, the foundation’s executive director and founder.

“Things have gone a bit more slowly than we would have liked,” he said.

They have begun using radio advertisements and are seeking patients in Hilo because there is more demand there, he said.

Stanford said few people sign up from Oahu because it is impractical for many people to grow their own marijuana for medical use.

The medical marijuana law allows patients to have three mature marijuana plants, four immature plants and an ounce of usable marijuana for each mature plant.

Many people on the Big Island live in rural settings and can grow it easier, he said.

Kamita said some doctors on the Big Island are involved in certifying patients for medical marijuana use “strictly as a business.”

One Big Island physician has certified 897 patients.

“If you have 897 patients, I’m wondering how much interaction you are having with the patient,” Kamita said.

LAMBERTVILLE, N.J. (AP) – This town laden with antique shops and inns on the banks of the Delaware River has long been a place known for its friendliness to same-sex couples.

That’s one reason the mayor, David Del Vecchio, is preparing to officiate a civil union ceremony for a lesbian couple as soon as such unions become legal.

Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed a law late last year making New Jersey the third state in the nation to offer civil unions, which give same-sex couples all the benefits and protections of marriage that the state can confer – but not the title.

Del Vecchio said two women from his community – he would not identify them – are ready to exchange their vows at 12:01 a.m. the first day they can. Nathan Rudy, a spokesperson for the state Department of Health and Senior Services, said the earliest day would be Feb. 22. Couples can begin applying for civil licenses on Feb. 19, but, as with marriage licenses, there will be a 72-hour waiting period.

Del Vecchio said allowing civil unions is “the right thing to do.” There’s another reason to be first, though: publicizing Lambertville as a destination for the ceremonies.

“Ultimately, this could be [an] important economic engine for us,” he said.

A stroke-of-midnight civil union ceremony would ensure Lambertville is at least tied for being the first place in New Jersey to hold such a ceremony that’s state-sanctioned. Ceremonies could happen simultaneously elsewhere.

Other towns that are known for being especially gay-friendly include South Orange, which opened City Hall at midnight on the day in 2004 when couples were first allowed to enter into domestic partnerships, and Asbury Park, where an official performed a wedding between two men before the state attorney general declared that union invalid.

HOUSTON (AP) – The impending parole of two of the people convicted in the 1991 gang beating and stabbing death of a gay banker has prompted the victim’s mother to ask for current photos of the men.

Nancy Rodriguez said she wanted the photos so she will be able to recognize them if they should come to her door.

“To be honest with you, I fear for the safety of my family,” she said in a story in the Houston Chronicle last week.

Paul Broussard was 27 when he and two friends were attacked as they left a gay nightclub in the Montrose area of Houston. His friends escaped with minor injuries. Broussard was beaten, kicked and stabbed to death.

Ten teens from The Woodlands were convicted in his death. Five received probation and one has since completed his sentence.

Jaime Aguirre, 34, and his brother, Javier Aguirre, 32, are set to be released later this month. They face deportation to Mexico upon their release but Rodriguez fears they could return to this country.

Leandro Ramirez, 32, is to be released on parole in March. Jon Buice, who was sentenced to 45 years, faces a parole hearing in October.

Michelle Lyons, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, said Rodriguez will be given the photos she requested.

“We release such photos all the time,” she said.

Rodriguez, who now lives in Georgia, has testified at numerous parole hearings in efforts to keep Broussard’s attackers in prison.

Andy Kahan, crime victim advocate for the mayor’s office, said the Aguirres had been kept in prison as long as possible.

“They were sentenced to 15 years, and they’ve just about maxed out their time – same with Ramirez,” he said.

Prison activist Ray Hill, who is gay, said he is trying to stop the Aguirres’ deportation.

“I know them and I’ve come to learn that they are not homophobic,” Hill said. “I am a gay man; they are friends of mine.”

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state’s outgoing attorney general says Wisconsin’s new ban on same-sex marriage doesn’t mean employers have to stop providing benefits to same-sex couples.

The six-page opinion released Dec. 28 was one of Peg Lautenschlager’s last official acts.

Voters in November approved a statewide constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

The city of Madison asked Lautenschlager to clarify whether the amendment had any bearing on its ability to offer benefits to domestic partners.

Lautenschlager wrote that the amendment’s language shows “that neither the Legislature nor the people intended to invalidate domestic partnerships when they adopted this provision.”

Lautenschlager, a Democrat, says though opinions from the attorney general are advisory, courts can rely on them to craft arguments.

Her successor, Republican JB Van Hollen, supported the ban. He took office on Jan. 3.