Newburgh Native, Civil Rights Attorney Wins "Genius Grant"

A Hudson Valley native who has been out front on many of the court cases involving gay rights and same-sex marriage is among 21 people recently named MacArthur Fellows by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Mary Bonauto is from Newburgh, but she now lives in Maine and works in Boston as an attorney and legal strategist for the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders. Bonauto, lead counsel in the case that led to the 2004 landmark gay marriage ruling in Massachusetts, says she was shocked when she got the news that she was a so-called "genius grant" winner.