Washington State Supreme Court rules against florist who turned away gay couple

By Sandhya Somashekhar
February 17 at 8:06 AM

In a victory for gay rights advocates, Washington’s Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against a Christian florist who was fined by the state for refusing to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding.

The justices agreed with a lower court that Barronnelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene’s Flowers in Richland, Wash., violated a state civil rights law that bars discrimination in public businesses on the basis of sexual orientation. The court also ruled that the law does not infringe on her free speech.

The case is one of several involving Christian wedding vendors that have emerged in recent years amid a dramatic expansion of gay rights. Social conservatives have argued that the legalization of same-sex marriage, and the proliferation of state and local laws barring discrimination against people on the basis of sexual orientation, have led to a trampling of religious liberties. They contend that the government should not be forcing these vendors to contribute their artistic talents to same-sex ceremonies, which they oppose on religious grounds, and that the vendors might end up having to abandon their profession to avoid violating their religious beliefs.

But as in Washington, courts have largely sided with the couples and government officials who have called their actions unlawful discrimination.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/02/17/washington-state-supreme-court-rules-against-florist-who-turned-away-gay-couple/?utm_term=.de1cf09bd3c5

http://www.adfmedia.org/files/ArlenesFlowersWSCopinion.pdf