The Supreme Court on Friday declined to hear arguments in an appeal from a florist who refused to serve a gay couple’s wedding.
The woman, Barronelle Stutzman, runs Arlene’s Flowers, a Washington flower shop, and said she could not make a flower arrangement for a wedding because it would violate her Christian beliefs. The incident occurred in 2013, before the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in its landmark 2015 decision Obergefell v. Hodges.
SUPREME COURT RULES FOR CATHOLIC FOSTER CARE AGENCY IN GAY DISCRIMINATION DISPUTE
The Supreme Court held her appeal on hold while it considered arguments in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, in which it decided that Philadelphia had violated a Catholic foster care agency’s First Amendment right by cutting ties with it after learning it would not serve gay couples. The ruling, however, was widely considered a narrow victory for the foster care agency, not widely applicable.
In Stutzman’s case, the state of Washington imposed a $1,000 fine on her for refusing to make the flower arrangement. The fine was upheld by the state Supreme Court.
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In her challenge, Stutzman’s lawyers at the First Amendment group Alliance Defending Freedom argued that Washington had violated her right to religious expression as well as her free speech rights.
The case was often noted for its similarity to that of Masterpiece Cakeshop, which involved a Denver baker named Jack Phillips who refused to bake a cake for a gay couple’s wedding. Phillips won a 2018 case at the Supreme Court but has continued to face lawsuits.
