Wyoming Supreme Court hears the case of Ruth Neely, a small-town magistrate targeted for her faith
The Wyoming Supreme Court heard arguments this week in a case that could set a chilling precedent throughout the state’s judiciary. The Wyoming Commission on Judicial Conduct and Ethics has asked the high court to remove Judge Ruth Neely, the Pinedale municipal judge and part-time circuit court magistrate, from office, ban her for life from the Wyoming judiciary, and fine her $40,000. Her offense? In response to a reporter’s question, Neely stated her Christian perspective on marriage precluded her from officiating a same-sex wedding. That statement, the commission said, was enough to show bias and an inability to adjudicate the law impartially.
The commission’s case is at odds with the First Amendment’s free speech and religious exercise clauses and is built on a judicial requirement that does not exist, Neely’s attorney Jim Campbell of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) told the court’s five justices.
“There is no judicial guidance on this issue,” Daniel Bloomberg, an attorney with the Becket Fund, told me. The Becket Fund provides legal representation in religious liberty cases and filed an amicus brief on Neely’s behalf along with amici from other legal service providers, scholars, and religious liberty advocates.
Bloomberg said that contrary to the commission’s brief filed prior to the Aug. 17 hearing, no Wyoming or federal statute requires a judge to perform gay weddings. Patrick Dixon, disciplinary counsel for the commission, had to walk back that assertion during oral arguments.
Judges can decline to service weddings for any reason. As a municipal court judge, Neely does not have the authority to perform weddings. But, as a magistrate, she can.
In 2014, with a judge’s repeal of the Wyoming marriage statute, same-sex couples began applying for marriage licenses. A reporter asked Neely if she was excited about the possibility of presiding over gay weddings. Neely said because of her religious convictions she could not take part in same-sex weddings.
Source: Christian judge fights to keep job – Religious Liberty – WORLD