OLYMPIA — The U. S. States Supreme Court has issued a grant, vacate and remand ruling in Arlene's Flowers Inc. v. Washington State, a case involving a Washington state flower shop that refused to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding, which sends the case back to Washington Supreme Court for review.
Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson brought the lawsuit against Arlene's Flower Shop based on Washington law that says if a business provides a service for opposite sex couples, it must provide that service equally to same-sex couples, according to the Attorney General's Office.
Ferguson said he is confident the Washington Supreme Court will uphold its previous ruling which was made in February.
“We expected this procedural step,” Ferguson said in a statement.
“The Washington State Supreme Court now has the job of determining whether the U.S. Supreme Court ruling affects this case," he said. "I am confident they will come to the same conclusion they did in their previous, unanimous ruling upholding the civil rights of same-sex couples in our state."
“The state of Washington bars discrimination in public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation," the Washington Supreme Court stated in its February ruling "Discrimination based on same-sex marriage constitutes discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation."