LYNDONVILLE, Vt.—A recent lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of a lesbian couple charges that a Vermont inn has refused to host their fall wedding reception because of their sexual orientation.
The suit was filed in July in Vermont Superior Court on behalf of Kate Baker and Ming Linsley. It alleges that the Wildflower Inn, whose owners James and Mary O’Reilly are parishioners of St. John the Evangelist Church in St. Johnsbury, violated Vermont’s Fair Housing and Public Accommodations Act, which prohibits inns, hotels, motels and other establishments from turning away patrons based on their sexual orientation. The law makes an exception for religious organizations.
The O’Reillys and the inn are being represented by the Alliance Defense Fund, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based legal organization.
Holly Carmichael, an attorney for ADF, said that similar discrimination complaints are being filed in states that allow same-sex marriage or civil unions.
—Brian J. Lowney
