Chief Justice Roy Moore of Alabama has decided to ignore the nationwide marriage equality ruling set forth in 2015 and is instead ordering judges not to issue any same-sex marriage licenses until further notice.
Moore claims that the ruling which rolled out the nationwide marriage equality, Obergefell V. Hodges, only applied to the particular states in the case, not the entire country. As Alabama already had rules in their lawbooks which laid out the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman, Moore is arguing that the ruling does not apply.
“IT IS ORDERED AND DIRECTED THAT: Until further decision by the Alabama Supreme Court, the existing orders of the Alabama Supreme Court that Alabama probate judges have a ministerial duty not to issue any marriage license contrary to the Alabama Sanctity of Marriage Amendment or the Alabama Marriage Protection Act remain in full force and effect. DONE January 6, 2016.”
Moore also cited the Kim Davis fiasco in Kentucky as another reason he was putting forth this order, saying that the ruling created “confusion and uncertainty” all over the nation.
No one really expected much more from the representatives of Alabama, but this sort of direct defiance cannot be allowed.
