The
U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared closely divided with likely
pivotal vote Justice Anthony Kennedy posing tough questions about a
Christian baker’s refusal to make a wedding cake for a gay couple but
also questioning whether a Colorado civil rights commission that ruled
on the issue was biased against religion.
The
nine justices heard an intense, extended 80-minute oral argument in the
major case on whether certain businesses can refuse service to gay
couples if they oppose same-sex marriage on religious grounds.
The
case concerns an appeal by Jack Phillips, a baker who runs Masterpiece
Cakeshop in the Denver suburb of Lakewood, of a state court ruling that
his refusal to make a cake for gay couple David Mullins and Charlie
Craig in 2012 on the basis of his religious beliefs violated a Colorado
anti-discrimination law.
Kennedy,
a conservative who sometimes sides with the court’s four liberals in
major cases, raised concerns about issuing a ruling siding with the
baker that would give a green light to discrimination against gay
people. (Reuters)
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