Every registrar of vital statistics who issues a marriage certificate or license without first requiring the medical certificate shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred (100) nor more than five hundred (500) dollars, or by imprisonment in jail for not less than three (3) nor more than six (6) months, or by both penalties, in the discretion of the court; Provided, That the provisions of §§ 235-240 of this title shall not be applicable in cases of marriages celebrated in articulo mortis; or when the parties thereto, by means of an affidavit made free of charge before the registrar of vital statistics, for which said officer is hereby authorized, show that prior to the date on which this amendatory act shall take effect they have had or procreated between them one or more children who are living.
History —May 14, 1937, No. 133, p. 290, § 5; Apr. 11, 1939, No. 19, p. 330.