Judge: Religious Court Clerks Can’t Refuse Same-Sex Marriage Licenses

U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves has struck down a provision of a Mississippi law that would have allowed state clerks to recuse themselves from signing off on same-sex marriage licenses.

On June 27, Reeves ruled that the exemption was in violation of the Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges ruling from June 2015, which made same-sex marriage a fundamental right across the nation, Reuters reports.

The provision allowing clerks to recuse themselves came from House Bill 1523, legislation passed by the Mississippi Legislature and signed into law by Republican Gov. Phil Bryant.

The law stipulated that three core religious beliefs would be protected under the First Amendment. These included the belief that only heterosexual marriage is valid, that sex outside of marriage is immoral, and that gender is determined by birth, according to The Desert Sun. The law would not only affect same-sex marriage licenses; it could also have a significant impact on adoptions, foster care, counseling services, business practices and school bathroom policies.

The law would have gone into effect on July 1. Campaign for Southern Equality and a lesbian couple residing in Mississippi sued the state over the legislation. They were represented by attorney Roberta Kaplan, the Associated Press reports.

During hearings over the legality of the provision, Kaplan said that allowing clerks to recuse themselves when dealing with same-sex couples “draws lines that affect people’s status in the community.”

Special assistant attorney general Paul Barnes, representing the state, said that the Supreme Court’s June 2015 ruling on same-sex marriage had alienated Christians in Mississippi.

“They felt denigrated,” Barnes said. “They felt disfavor.”

In a 16-page ruling, Reeves sided with Kaplan’s argument, noting that Mississippi lawmakers were not allowed to disregard the Supreme Court’s ruling just because they did not agree with it, Reuters reports.

“Mississippi’s elected officials may disagree with Obergefell, of course, and may express that disagreement as they see fit — by advocating for a constitutional amendment to overturn the decision, for example,” Reeves wrote.

Reeves will also rule on the other provisions of House Bill 1523, which are subject to four other lawsuits.

A spokesman for the Campaign for Southern Equality praised Reeves’ ruling while Mississippi lieutenant governor Tate Reeves blasted the decision.

“If this opinion by the federal court denies even one Mississippian of their fundamental right to practice their religion, then all Mississippians are denied their First Amendment rights,” Tate wrote in a statement.

“I hope the state’s attorneys will quickly appeal this decision to the 5th Circuit to protect the deeply held religious beliefs of all Mississippians,” Tate added.

Sources: The Desert Sun, AP via Gulf Live, Reuters via The Huffington Post / Photo Credit: Torbakhopper/Flickr