Mobile County, the center of the same-sex marriage dispute in Alabama, has just decided to not grant marriage licenses to anyone.
The third-largest county in Alabama has just decided to stop issuing all marriage licenses, regardless if the couple applying is same-sex or different sex. Mobile County Probate Judge Don Davis has been at the center of the marriage controversy since he had responded to a federal judge’s decision to strike down the state ban on same-sex marriage. Davis opted to halt the issuance of all marriage licenses then, until that same judge ordered him to issue the licenses to all couples.
Late Tuesday evening, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, in direct violation of the federal judge’s ruling – creating something of a constitutional crisis, or at least, great confusion.
Citing the ruling of the Alabama Supreme Court, the Mobile Probate Judge office’s website states it “will not issue any marriage license to any applicants. We regret having to take this action, but feel that it is necessary given the unprecedented circumstances that currently exist. It is the Courts [sic] intent to comply with all law governing its operations and to not discriminate in any manner against any person. We regret any inconvenience this action may cause any party.”
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Image by Dave Pearce via Flickr and a CC license