Oregon Bakery Fined For Turning Away Lesbian Couple Will Appeal To Supreme Court

The former owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa were ordered to pay $135,000 in damages to the women.
Former Sweet Cakes by Melissa owners Aaron and Melissa Klein want the Supreme Court to overturn a $135,000 fine.
Former Sweet Cakes by Melissa owners Aaron and Melissa Klein want the Supreme Court to overturn a $135,000 fine.
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The owners of a shuttered Oregon bakery fined for refusing to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple are appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that lawyers for Melissa and Aaron Klein, former owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, filed the petition Monday.

They’re asking the high court to overturn a state order to pay $135,000 in emotional damages to the couple they turned away.

The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries imposed the fine in 2015 after finding the Kleins had violated a state anti-discrimination law. An Oregon appeals court upheld the order, and the state Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

The U.S. high court ruled in favor of a Colorado baker in a similar case, but that decision didn’t address whether a business can invoke religious objections to refuse service to lesbian and gay people.

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