State Representative Matt Shea (R-4) is so eager to protect marriage from gay people that helped found the new group Protect Marriage Washington. But Shea has hardly been a good steward of the institution—so it's a little ironic he's trying to protect the sanctity of marriage. The Spokane County Clerk's office identified 44 pleadings related to a knock-down, drag-out divorce with his ex-wife, Lisa Shea. Among those pleading are three temporary restraining orders filed against Matt Shea in 2007 and a protection order. A clerk, who said I would need to go to the Spokane office to actually see the documents, mentioned that in one declaration, Lisa Shea claimed Matt Shea "flat-out lied in many respects" about his role in alleged domestic abuse. The Spokesman Review detailed some of the scandal last summer:

Matt T. Shea’s wife, Lisa, was granted a divorce in January after complaining that he treated her “as a possession,” and was physically and emotionally abusive.

She said Shea insisted she walk on his left side because his sword, if he had one, would be on his right side. He said he knows nothing about that, but as a courtesy would walk between her and traffic.

Lisa Shea’s brother-in-law, Tino P. Vargas, swore in court documents that he saw Matt Shea yell at his wife, grab her arm “very hard and violently” and push her into a vehicle.

I can see why Mr. Shea trembles at the specter of more marriages.