Baronelle Stutzman, the Richland florist whose refusal to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding touched off nearly a decade of legal wrangling, has finally paid up.
Stutzman agreed on November 19 to drop her final appeal to the US Supreme Court and settle the case with a $5,000 payment to plaintiffs Curt Freed and Robert Ingersoll.
The case began in 2013 when Freed and Ingersoll tried to order flowers for their wedding from Stutzman's shop, Arlene's Flowers. Stutzman turned them down, saying it was against her religion to recognize same-sex marriage.
The couple complained to the Washington State Human Rights Commission, charging Stutzman with violating the state's civil rights laws. The commission agreed, and when Stutzman refused to settle the complaint, sued her.
Stutzman challenged Washington's nondiscrimination laws, claiming that her First Amendment religious rights trumped state civil rights laws. A lengthy legal battle ensued, with Stutzman represented by the anti-LGBTQ legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, and the ACLU working on the side of the Gay couple.
The Washington State Supreme Court found against Stutzman and upheld the validity of the state's nondiscrimination laws. The florist then appealed to the US Supreme Court.
In July this year, the high court declined to hear the case, leaving the ruling against Stutzman in effect. She then filed yet another appeal, asking the Supreme Court to reconsider.
Possibly because recent high court rulings have favored LGBTQ rights, Stutzman finally dropped her appeal.
The ADF said in a statement that "a settlement agreement secured by Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys with the ACLU ends a lawsuit brought against floral artist Barronelle Stutzman nearly a decade ago without forcing her to act against her religious beliefs or to pay potentially ruinous attorneys' fees — a threat she has endured for years.
"Stutzman has chosen to retire so her beloved employees can run her business, Arlene's Flowers. She will withdraw a pending petition for rehearing at the US Supreme Court and make a payment of only $5,000 to the two men who sued her."
Stutzman also issued her own�statement in which she said she'd been friends with Ingersoll and provided flowers for him prior to 2013, but she "drew a line" when asked to provide flowers for his wedding to another man.
"What followed were lawsuits filed against me and a concerted effort to either force me to change my religious beliefs or pay a devastating price for believing them, including being threatened with the loss of my home, my business, and my life savings," she said.
According to CNN, Freed and Ingersoll will donate the $5,000 to a local PFLAG chapter, along with an additional $5,000 of their own money.
In a statement issued by ACLU, Freed and Ingersoll said, "We took on this case because we were worried about the harm being turned away would cause LGBTQ people. We are glad the Washington Supreme Court rulings will stay in place to ensure that same-sex couples are protected from discrimination and should be served by businesses like anyone else.
"We are also pleased to support our local PFLAG's work to support LGBTQ people in the Tri-Cities area. It was painful to be turned away, and we are thankful that this long journey for us is finally over."