Court lifts stay; clerks will issue same-sex licenses

A group of Mississippi circuit clerks said they'll be issuing same-sex marriage licenses after meeting with Gov. Phil Bryant and a lawyer with the attorney general's office and receiving some "clarity."

And the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday lifted a stay that had caused confusion over whether Mississippi could begin allowing same-sex marriages.

Seven circuit clerks, from DeSoto, Jasper, Jones, Newton, Pontotoc, Simpson and Yalobusha counties, traveled to Jackson on Thursday, asking for some guidance on issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. All but one, from DeSoto County, said they had refrained from issuing any same-sex marriage licenses since Friday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling. They said they were confused over directives from Attorney General Jim Hood, and had some concerns over the state license form, which includes boxes for "groom" and "bride."

"The opinions from the AG are extremely vague," Jones County Circuit Clerk Bart Gavin said as the group gathered before going to the governor's and AG's offices. "The first one seemed to say don't issue them. Then the next says we can issue them but they may not be valid. It's lawyer gobbledy-goo ... Everybody needs to take a deep breath, and give us some clear direction on what to do, when to do it and how to do it. We will follow the law, but we want to get it right."

Jasper County Circuit Clerk Billy G. Rayner said, "With the marriage license forms, if we use the wrong color ink, vital statistics sends it back. If we miss a column, they send it back. If we get one column wrong, they send it back. But what do they want us to do now, use White-out?"

After the Supreme Court decision Friday, Hood sent a statement to circuit clerks saying the decision was not immediately effective here because of a stay issued in federal court in a Mississippi case. After many clerks then declined to issue licenses to same-sex couples, Hood on Monday sent an email to clerks that his Friday message "seems to have been misinterpreted as prohibiting circuit clerks from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples."

The circuit clerks said they were concerned they could get sued either way – for issuing licenses that could later be invalid, or for refusing to issue them. Several said they have their personal beliefs or feelings against same-sex marriage, but all said they plan to follow the law.

The appeals court on Friday returned a Mississippi same-sex marriage lawsuit to U.S. District Court in Jackson, and lifted its stay on that court's ruling last year overturning the state's ban on gay marriage. It gave District Judge Carlton Reeves until July 17 to enter a final ruling, expected to be in line with the Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage nationwide.

The governor and attorney general's office barred media from their meetings with the clerks. But afterward, the clerks said they were generally more at ease, and all plan to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

"The governor said he understood our concerns, but said most were out of his hands," Gavin said after they met with Bryant. "He's like us, going to follow the law, but what is the law."

Then, after meeting with an AG's attorney, Gavin said: "They said the licenses could still come back on us, and they recommend we get a waiver signed to protect us. But we still feel better. We don't have all the clear answers we want, but it is better for us to go ahead and issue the licenses."

On Tuesday, Grenada Circuit Clerk Linda Barnette resigned saying gay marriage "violates my core values as a Christian" and she would not issue same-sex licenses.

DeSoto County Circuit Clerk Dale Thompson on Wedensday said she has similar beliefs about same-sex marriage, but will follow the law. She said she issued a license to a same-sex couple on Wednesday morning, after first turning them away on Monday.

"My only option would be to resign, and I could not do that in good conscience," Thompson said. "... On Monday at my office, they came in at 10 minutes to five, with the news media with them. I told them I was waiting on an AG's opinion, for more instruction how to do it. They made it sound like I was refusing. I wasn't. They came back today."

Simpson County Circuit Clerk Steve Womack said: "For the record, I oppose it. My religious beliefs oppose it. But I will follow the law."

In its ruling Wednesday, the Fifth Circuit Appeals Court opined that while the rights of same-sex couples to marry cannot constitutionally be denied, religions have First Amendment rights to advocate against such unions.

The court said, "Religions, and those who adhere to religious doctrines, may continue to advocate ... same sex marriage should not be condoned."

"The First Amendment ensures that religious organizations and persons are given proper protection as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths, and to their own deep aspirations to continue the family structure they have long revered."

Bryant said he was "heartened by the 5th Circuit's implication that it recognizes the rights of people of faith" and said he "will continue my efforts to protect the religious liberties of Mississippians."

Contact Geoff Pender at (601) 961-7266 or gpender@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @GeoffPender on Twitter.