The Dona Ana county clerk being sued by New Mexico Republicans for
deciding independently to begin issuing marriage licenses to gay and
lesbian couples is seeking donors to help defray the county's legal
bills.
Lynn Ellins sparked a small revolution when he announced on August
21 that New Mexico's laws did not prohibit gay couples from marrying.
As of next week, seven counties, representing nearly 60 percent of the
state's population, will join Dona Ana in issuing such licenses.
(Related: Los
Alamos: Eighth New Mexico county issues marriage licenses to gay
couples.)
According to the Las
Cruces Sun-News, Ellins' office has started requesting
donations to cover its legal defense bills.
Ellins said that he “felt it was inappropriate” to use county
resources to pay the legal fees. He said taxpayers who do not agree
with his decision should not be burdened with the bill.
Ellins said that his attorney had estimated the defense will cost
$40,000.
The group ProgressNow New Mexico has launched a
website dedicated to raising the funds. As of Thursday, nearly
$7,100 had been received from 157 contributors.