Washington Supreme Court to rule in same-sex wedding florist case

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — The Washington Supreme Court is set to rule in the case of a florist who was sued for refusing to provide services for a same-sex wedding.


The court listed the case Wednesday as one of five cases it would be issuing rulings for on Thursday. The court heard arguments in November in the closely watched case against Barronelle Stutzman, a florist in Richland who was fined by a lower court for denying service to a gay couple in 2013.

Stutzman says she was exercising her First Amendment rights. She had previously sold the couple flowers and knew they were gay but told them she couldn't provide flowers for their wedding because same-sex marriage was incompatible with her Christian beliefs.

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson and the couple sued her, saying she broke state anti-discrimination and consumer protection laws.