Supreme Court Declines Review of Controversial New Mexico Case
Written by Don Byrd
Ten Commandments Trial Underway in New Mexico
Written by Don ByrdA trial underway in Bloomfield, New Mexico will decide the fate of a 3,000 pound Ten Commandments monument on the front lawn of city hall. Plaintiffs argue the display is an unconstitutional government endorsement of religion. The City counters by claiming the monument is private speech on what they have deemed a public forum, open to any who wish to place “historical monuments.”
New Mexico Hotel Settles EEOC Claim for Religious Discrimination
Written by Don ByrdOnce more, this time with feeling: you can’t fire a worker for wearing a headscarf when removing it violates her religious beliefs. It will cost you.
The EEOC yesterday announced a settlement with a New Mexico hotel.
New Mexico Supreme Court Rules Against Photography Company in Religious Freedom Dispute
Written by Don Byrd The New Mexico Supreme Court today ruled that Elane Photography violated the state’s Human Rights Act by refusing to provide services for a same-sex wedding ceremony, saying that such a refusal is barred by the law “in the same way as if it had refused to photograph a wedding between people of different races.” The company argued that such an interpretation of the law is an unconstitutional infringement on their free exercise and free speech rights under the First Amendment and the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, but the Court disagreed.
The majority found that the NMHRA is a neutral law and is generally applicable. Therefore, the Court concluded, the right to freely exercise religion does not relieve Elane Photography from its enforcement. Additionally, it found the New Mexico RFRA doesn’t apply here because it applies only when the government is a party to the action. Here, the dispute is between two private parties, the photography company and the same-sex couple who were denied service.
Perhaps the most striking section of the opinion, however, is from concurring Justice Richard Bosson, who tackled head-on the very delicate and difficult religious liberty issues raised by this case and others like it. With obvious respect for the religious views of the plaintiff photographers, the Huguenins, Justice Bosson explains why he finds against them.
