New Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a local wedding photography business in Albuquerque violated state law by refusing to photograph a lesbian couple seeking the company’s services.
The state’s highest court found that Elane Photography’s decision to refuse to serve the couple was an act of discrimination under the state’s Human Rights Act, which outlaws discrimination based on sexual orientation, according to The Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog. The owners of Elane Photography argued they were exercising their rights of free speech and religion in refusing to photograph the couple’s ceremony.
Earlier in the week, Doña Ana County Clerk Lynn Ellins received national attention for issuing marriage licenses to gay couples. Ellins argued that New Mexico’s ambiguous laws on gay marriage did not prohibit him from granting the licenses.
