Texas AG Sides With Judge Who Won’t Marry Gays

The Waco Tribune-Herald reports:

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will not defend a state agency being sued for its decision to sanction a Waco judge who refuses to perform same-sex marriages.

Dianne Hensley, a justice of the peace who officiates marriages between men and women but refuses to perform marriages for same-sex couples, received a public warning late last year from the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, a small agency charged with disciplining Texas judges.

Weeks later, Hensley sued the agency in McLennan County District Court, claiming it violated state law by punishing her for actions she took in accordance with her religious beliefs.

The attorney general’s office is charged with defending state agencies when they are challenged in court.

But Ken Paxton won’t defend a commission that was sued after it issued a public warning for a Waco judge who refuses to perform same-sex marriages. https://t.co/lZbxPZV4EM

— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) January 29, 2020

(Tipped by JMG reader Rob)