Current Events
Judge Overrules Virginia Marriage Law, Declaring it Unfair to Sikhs
NEWS REPORT
Fairfax, Virginia, USA
A Fairfax County judge has ruled in favor of four Sikh-Americans who challenged a Virginia law that required them to pay $500 to perform marriage ceremonies.
The law exempts ordained ministers from various faiths from posting a $500 bond to perform weddings. The Sikhs said the law discriminates against them because their faith allows no clergy or ordained ministers.
In a ruling Friday (March 29, 2013), Judge Dennis Smith sided with the Sikhs. He said the requirement to post a bond is an unconstitutional infringement on freedom of religion. He ordered that Sikh men and women be licensed to perform marriages without having to pay the fee.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia, which represented the Sikhs, on Monday urged the state legislature to change the law to reflect the judge’s ruling.
[Courtesy: CBS. Edited for sikhchic.com]
April 4, 2013