In this May 17, 2005, file photo, Julie, front left, and Hillary Goodridge pose with other gay couples and supporters as they celebrate their first wedding anniversary in Boston. The couple, who led the legal fight for Massachusetts to become the first state to legalize same-sex marriages, filed for divorce Thursday, Jan. 29, 2009.

The lesbian couple who led the fight for gay marriage in Massachusetts is filing for divorce.

Julie and Hillary Goodridge, of Boston, were among seven gay couples whose lawsuit¹, Goodridge vs. Department of Public Health, thrust Massachusetts into the center of a nationwide debate on gay marriage. The couple became the public face of the debate in the state, the first to legalize same-sex marriages.

The couple was married on May 17, 2004, the first day same-sex marriages became legal under a court ruling. Their daughter served as ring-bearer.

The divorce filing is not unexpected. The couple announced they were separating in 2006.

A clerk for the Suffolk Probate and Family Court said the case, filed last week, is impounded.

Messages left for the Goodridges were not immediately returned Tuesday.

曾经带头争取马萨诸塞州同性婚姻合法化的女同性恋伴侣日前正在申请离婚。

来自波士顿的朱莉和古德里奇是古德里奇诉公共卫生部一案的七对同性伴侣之一。这场诉讼曾将马萨诸塞州推向了全美范围内同性婚姻大讨论的风口浪尖。这对伴侣也因此成为马萨诸塞州同性婚姻大辩论中的公众人物，该州在美国最先承认同性婚姻合法化。

这对伴侣于法院承认同性婚姻合法的首日---2004年5月17日结婚，而婚礼戒童则是她们的女儿。

离婚申请并不出人意料，早在2006年她们就宣布感情破裂。

萨福克遗嘱检验和家庭事务法庭的一位书记员称，上周提交的这份离婚申请还未经审理。

古德里奇夫妇本周二还没有收到法院答复。