July 19, 2011

GRANBY — A second town clerk in central New York says she’s resigning over her religious objection to gay marriage, which becomes legal in the state on Sunday.
Ruth Sheldon, town clerk for 15 years in Granby, 25 miles north of Syracuse, said Monday that she has submitted her resignation effective Saturday.
Last week, Barker Town Clerk Laura Fotusky in Broome County announced her resignation. Both she and Sheldon said they felt signing a marriage certificate for a same-sex couple would violate their religious principles. Guilderkand’s Town Clerk, Rosemary Centi, resigned from her post as the town’s marriage officiant, citing the state’s new marriage equality law.
Town clerks in numerous other towns and cities have scheduled Sunday office hours to accommodate gay couples. James Tormey, administrative judge for central New York, says he’ll make a judge available for couples wishing to waive the normal 24-hour waiting period between getting a license and marrying.

Read more: http://www.cbs6albany.com/news/town-1286710-clerk-marriage.html