Couples Wed On Valentine’s Day

As a magistrate, District Judge Daniel Baranoski is unable to sentence anyone who comes before him to life. However, he joked, that changed on Valentine’s Day when he officiated ceremonies for 11 Bucks County couples.

The couples came before Baranoski at his Penndel courthouse to get married. Some couples were decked out and had family with them while one duo had a quick ceremony ahead of a scheduled out-of-country wedding.

Stacey and Christopher Demchak, residents of Morrisville, were among the couples that wed in the afternoon. Their ceremony came after being together for several years.

“When you feel it, you just feel it,” she said, adding the ceremony was scheduled only a few weeks out.

Jennifer and LaMont Carey were the final couple of the day to tie the knot.

The Careys said they have been together for close to five years and engaged for three before deciding to wed on Thursday.

With their families and children watching from courtroom seating, Baranoski oversaw the wedding as the couple read their vows and engaged in their first kiss as a married couple.

The first wedding of the day was cancelled because the groom broke his leg, which Baranoski joked may have been an omen.

To keep with the Valentine’s Day theme, the courthouse staff decorated the building and the judge cleared the day of any criminal or traffic proceedings.

Baranoski is among the last district judges in Lower Bucks County to offer Valentine’s Day wedding services, adding that he enjoys them.