Federal judge blocks Mississippi religious objections law

FILE - In this April 4, 2016 file photo, State Rep. Jay Hughes, D-Oxford, calls on fellow lawmakers to vote against House Bill 1523, on the chamber floor at the Capitol in Jackson, Miss. Hughes says Speaker Philip Gunn violated the state constitution by setting a computer voice at a superfast speed to read bills aloud. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, file) FILE - In this April 4, 2016 file photo, State Rep. Jay Hughes, D-Oxford, calls on fellow lawmakers to vote against House Bill 1523, on the chamber floor at the Capitol in Jackson, Miss. Hughes says Speaker Philip Gunn violated the state constitution by setting a computer voice at a superfast speed to read bills aloud. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, file)

By Associated Press July 1, 2016 2 min read

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – A federal judge has blocked a Mississippi law that would let merchants and government employees cite religious beliefs in denying or delaying services to same-sex couples.

U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves filed orders in two lawsuits blocking the law just moments before it was to take effect Friday.

State attorneys are expected to appeal.

The law would protect three beliefs: That marriage is only between a man and a woman; that sex should only take place in such a marriage; and that a person’s gender is determined at birth and cannot be altered.

It would allow clerks to cite religious objections to recuse themselves from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and could affect adoptions and foster care, business practices and school bathroom policies.