Alabama's Chief Justice order on Gay marriage having impact - Clinton issues statement
By Paul Gattis | pgattis@al.com
Montgomery, AL
Alabama's gay marriage law, thought to have finalized last year to allow same-sex couples to wed, has been thrown back into chaos.
The probate offices in three Alabama counties – including the cities of Huntsville and Mobile – are now refusing to distribute marriage licenses to same-sex couples in wake of an administrative order filed Wednesday by Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore.
The counties of Madison, Mobile and Elmore are no longer permitting gay couples to wed.
Lawrence County Probate Judge Michael Praytor says he has sought the opinion of the county attorney, and will likely make a decision Thursday on how to proceed, according to The Associated Press.
No other counties are believed to have immediately changed their policies on issuing gay marriage licenses as of Wednesday evening.
Montgomery County Probate Judge Steven Reed blasted Moore on Twitter.
The Southern Poverty Law Center filed a supplement to its ethics complaint against Moore following his order.
"Chief Justice Roy Moore is once again demonstrating that he is unfit to hold office," SPLC President Richard Cohen said on the organization's website. "Despite the fact that Alabama probate judges are under a federal court order that bars them from discriminating against same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses, Justice Moore has irresponsibly advised them to do the opposite. You would think after being removed from the bench once before that the chief justice would know better."
Susan Watson, director of the ACLU of Alabama, called Moore's order "silly" and said it wouldn't change the fact that most Alabama judges are issuing licenses to gay couples, the AP reported.
In Jefferson County, the state's largest, Probate Judge Alan King said he would continue to follow the 2015 ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court.
"In Jefferson County we will continue to follow the U.S. Supreme Court order and issue marriage licenses to all individuals," King told AL.com.
In Huntsville, the office of Probate Judge Tommy Ragland said officials would continue to accept marriage license applications from same-sex couples but that no licenses would be issued at this time.
Ragland's office said he was waiting for a clarification of Moore's ruling from Madison County Attorney Jeff Rich.
A sign taped to the office window of Mobile County Probate Judge Don Davis said that because of Moore's ruling, his office would cease issuing all marriage licenses.
The Montgomery Advertiser reported that Elmore County Probate Judge John Enslen said his office had stopped issuing all marriage licenses.
Moore's order has become a national story with dispatches carried by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times and CBS News.
Hillary Clinton: Gay marriage 'law of the land – including in Alabama'
By Paul Gattis | pgattis@al.com
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said same-sex marriage is the "law of the land – including in Alabama."
In a statement issued Wednesday night, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee said that the administrative order issued by Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore indicates that more work needs to be done to secure the marriage rights of gays.
Clinton's statement did not name Moore but said in her statement, "There are still judges who are determined to stand in the way of people's rights."
Clinton's full statement:
"Marriage equality is now the law of the land—including in Alabama. Today's unconstitutional order reminds us that, despite the Supreme Court's ruling that all Americans have the right to marry the person they love, our work is far from over. There are still judges who are determined to stand in the way of people's rights. There are still politicians who argue the Court got it wrong and states should ignore its ruling.
"We need to ensure that marriage equality is guaranteed and enforced nationwide. And we need to fight discrimination against LGBT Americans wherever it occurs. There are places where you can get married on Sunday and are at risk of being fired from your job or evicted from your home on Monday because you're gay. That's not how it should be in the United States of America. As President, I'll fight for the equal rights of all Americans, no matter who they are or who they love."