In re the Validation of Marriage of Ketchum

I

On April 2, 1979, the appellant Shirley Ketchum filed a petition for' Validation of Marriage between herself and Francis Ketchum with the Tuba City District Court. The petition alleged that Shirley and Francis were married in Kayenta, Arizona, by a traditional marriage on June 7, 1974, that two children were born of the marriage and that they lived together as man and wife until Francis' death on February 8, 1979.

The apparent reason the appellant filed the petition was because the Social Security Administration refused to pay any claim without documentation of the Ketchums' marriage.

On June…