SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - As same-sex couples prepare to wed in California later this month, one county clerk in the conservative Central Valley plans to sidestep the state's legalization of gay marriage by not performing any ceremonies.
Ann Barnett plans to stop performing ceremonies for all couples in Kern County as of June 14. She will issue the new gender-neutral marriage licenses as required by law on June 17, but refuses to preside over any ceremony because of space and staff constraints, she said in a statement.
Barnett's announcement came after she received advice from county lawyers that she could not refuse to marry only couples of her choosing.
Barnett, who also got advice from the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian law firm, did not return multiple requests for comment on Friday from The Associated Press.
Another Central Valley clerk, Merced County's Stephen Jones, said Friday he would end all ceremonies too, but he later retracted his statement after coming under pressure from county officials.
Jones told the AP that he was reversing course after negotiations with the county resulted in approval of another clerk position to perform weddings and some additional space. The small office performs 500 weddings a year.
"On the 17th I expect to be absolutely bombarded," Jones said.
As long as she treats all couples the same I don't think there are any legal grounds to compel her to perform weddings if she doesn't want to. I'm sure there will be plenty of liberal judges ready and willing to do the ceremonies.
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