Suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy
Moore on Tuesday released two memos related to an ongoing
investigation into charges he violated judicial ethics.
Moore sent the memos to fellow justices
months after the U.S. Supreme Court in Obergefell found that
gay and lesbian couples have a constitutional right to marry.
Moore's outspoken opposition to
marriage equality led the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) to file
complaints with the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission, which
forwarded the charges to the Alabama Court of the Judiciary. The
court suspended Moore with pay until it decides on the matter.
According to AL.com, portions of the
memos have been redacted and Moore is fighting the court's request to
submit the full un-redacted memos.
In March 2015, before the Obergefell
ruling, the Alabama Supreme Court issued an order telling probate
judges not to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. Days after the
high court handed down its ruling, the Alabama Supreme Court asked
parties in the case to file arguments on how Obergefell
affected its March 2015 order.
After the Alabama Supreme Court failed
to act in the case, Moore wrote to this fellow justices, urging them
to take action.
In one memo, Moore cited the plight of
Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis, who became a Christian celebrity for
refusing a judge's order to issue marriage licenses to all qualified
couples, including same-sex couples.
“As I have said before, Obergefell
is particularly egregious because it mandates submission in violation
of religious conscience (ask Kim Davis),” Moore wrote. “Either
go along or be disqualified from holding public office. In the near
future Christians like Clerk Kim Davis will be driven out of public
life, forced to forsake their faith or their livelihood.”
128 words are redacted between the two
memos, AL.com
reported.