Upstate NY Farm Fined for Refusing Same-Sex Wedding

The owners of a farm in Schaghticoke, located in upstate New York, were fined $13,000 by the state on August 8, after refusing to hold a same-sex wedding on their grounds two years ago, which violated New York's Human Rights Law, the Albany Times Union reports.

The state's Human Rights Commission found that Robert and Cynthia Gifford, who run Liberty Ridge Farm, violated the rights of Jennifer and Melissa McCarthy, who were legally allowed to tie the knot after New York passed its gay marriage bill in 2011.

Back in 2012, Cynthia Gifford told the women she took issue if their wedding ceremony was held on the farm, citing her religious beliefs. Initially, Cynthia Gifford told Melissa McCarthy over the phone to come by and visit the farm, Gay Cit News reports.

But according to the New York State Division of Human Rights, things changed when Melissa McCarthy referred to her fianc�e as "she." Cynthia Gifford then said there was "a little bit of a problem" because "we do not hold same-sex marriages here at the barn."

Cynthia and Robert Gifford were hit with a $10,000 fine for refusing to serve the couple and had to pay $1,500 to each of the women for "mental anguish."

"All New Yorkers are entitled to their own religious beliefs, but businesses cannot discriminate based on sexual orientation anymore than they can based on race or national origin," NYCLU Staff Attorney Mariko Hirose, the plaintiffs' lead lawyer in the case, told the Albany Times Union.

According to the Gifford's lawyer, Jim Trainor, said they were considering appeal the ruling. He added that the farmers had hosted LGBT events in the past but never a same-sex wedding, due to religious beliefs.

"They just felt the religious ceremony violated their beliefs," Trainor told the newspaper. He also added that the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby ruling set a precedent allows business to make decisions based on their religious convictions.