Alabama court won’t defy Supreme Court on gay marriage

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Alabama Supreme Court is refusing to defy the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that effectively legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

The court issued a one-sentence order Friday dismissing a challenge by a probate judge and a conservative policy group that wanted the state to bar gay marriage despite the landmark federal decision.

In one of several written opinions accompanying the order, Justice Greg Shaw called the decision a “clear refusal” to ignore the Supreme Court ruling last June.

Several other state justices railed against the high court’s ruling while noting they can’t overturn it.

Chief Justice Roy Moore wrote that previous state orders barring gay marriage in Alabama remain. Most probate judges already are ignoring that directive, however, and hundreds of same-sex couples already have wed in Alabama.