Agency: Attorney General Media contact: Lynsey Mukomel 517-599-2746 Public inquiries: 517-335-7622 LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing a brief in support of the constitutionality of Virginia’s anti-discrimination law. The amicus brief was filed Friday Aug. 27 with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in the case of Updegrove v. Herring . Specifically, the plaintiffs, Robert Updegrove and Loudoun Multi-Images LLC, d/b/a Bob Updegrove Photography, claim they intend to advertise that they won’t offer wedding photography services for LGBTQ+ couples. The plaintiffs claim Virginia’s public accommodations law, amended last year to protect against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, violates their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and free exercise of religion. The filed brief supports Virginia’s defense of the law in the plaintiffs’ appeal following the District Court’s dismissal of the lawsuit. "Turning away customers based on their sexual orientation is clear discrimination," Nessel said. "I stand with my colleagues in filing this brief in support of Virginia’s expanded public accommodations law. No one should ever be barred from accessing goods and services simply for whom they love. Allowing such discrimination would set a […]
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