Clerk to quit, cites 'moral conviction'

She won’t sign off on same-sex unions

The Cleburne County clerk plans to resign rather than issue same-sex marriage licenses, the county judge said Monday.

Dana Guffey, 51, told County Judge Jerry Holmes early Monday that she would submit her resignation today.

"I'd be safe in saying it's because of the [U.S.] Supreme Court ruling" that legalized gay marriage last week, Holmes said.

As a result, Holmes called a meeting of the county's Quorum Court for 7 p.m. today in Heber Springs to declare a vacancy. He said the county then would begin accepting applications for the job.

At its regular July 9 meeting, the Quorum Court likely will appoint a successor, who under Arkansas law cannot succeed himself, Holmes said. Until then, the county will leave the clerk's job vacant.

The clerk's office already has been working to update its software for same-sex marriage licenses, Holmes said.

Guffey did not return a phone message left at the clerk's office Monday afternoon. A call to the phone number she listed on voter-registration records was answered by a recording from someone with Quitman First Baptist Church. No one returned a message left for her there.

Guffey told The Associated Press that her decision reflects her beliefs.

"It is definitely a moral conviction for me," she said. "I didn't announce anything publicly or on social media or anything because I didn't want my decision to be seen as hateful. I know some people will look at it like that, but this wasn't easy. It wasn't a decision I made lightly. And I do not hate anybody."

She told the AP that leaving the office she has held for more than 24 years will be difficult.

"My office mates understand," she said. "They're not judging me, the same as I'm not judging anyone else who issues the licenses. It's my conviction, though."

Holmes said he did not know Guffey's political party affiliation. A March 2014 article in The [Heber Springs] Sun Times newspaper said she was a candidate in the Democratic primary.

Earlier Monday, Gov. Asa Hutchinson noted that if a county clerk has the appropriate software in place, marriage licenses no longer require the clerk's signature.

Hutchinson, a Republican, said he knew some clerks "are having a difficult time" with the decision. Still, he said, they "have a duty to follow the law."

"Obviously, if someone cannot follow that duty, that's a decision for them to make," he said. "This is not a matter of discretion.

"While I disagree with the Supreme Court decision, it's the law."

Terri Harrison, president of the Arkansas Association of County Clerks, said Monday that she was not aware of any other clerks planning to resign over the issue.

The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 on Friday that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry nationwide.

In the court's majority opinion, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote, "The right to marry is a fundamental right inherent in the liberty of the person. Couples of the same sex may not be deprived of that right and that liberty."

Since then, numerous marriage licenses have been issued in Arkansas for same-sex couples. Some counties have updated their software to provide for gender-neutral licenses instead of only those identifying a bride and a groom.

State Desk on 06/30/2015

Upcoming Events