One officiant was a few blocks down the street, another was the justice of the peace in West, 25 miles away. In 2016, she instituted a new policy: Gay couples seeking marriages were told the judge could not marry them due to her faith and were offered a list of alternative referrals.
After the Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage, justices of the peace in Texas were told if they chose to officiate weddings they could not turn away couples due to their sexuality.įor the first year, Hensley stopped performing weddings altogether.