Staff Reports
Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley just won a hard‑fought legal victory that should make anyone who cares about religious liberty sit up. A Travis County district court entered a final judgment that not only awarded Hensley damages and big attorney’s fees, it also barred the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct from punishing her for refusing to officiate same‑sex weddings on religious grounds.
Court ruling: what the judgment does
The 459th District Court, with Judge Maya Guerra Gamble signing the judgment, awarded Hensley the maximum compensatory damages under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act (TRFRA) — $10,000 — and more than $630,000 in attorneys’ fees. Even better for religious‑liberty defenders, the order permanently enjoins the Commission from investigating, sanctioning, or disciplining Hensley over her decision to decline same‑sex wedding ceremonies because of her sincere religious beliefs. First Liberty Institute, which represented her, called the decision a vindication; the court’s injunction makes that vindication real and enforceable.
Why this matters for religious liberty and judges
This case is about more than one Justice of the Peace refusing to perform a ceremony. It tests whether government discipline can punish a judge for acting on a sincere religious belief. Hensley had provided a low‑cost referral list to ensure access to marriage ceremonies while declining to officiate same‑sex weddings herself. Instead of leaving her alone, the Commission issued a public warning and forced the matter into court. The district court’s ruling affirms that TRFRA protects public officials who act on their faith in limited, conscience‑driven ways — and that judicial overseers can’t casually strip away those protections.
Wider implications: ripple effects across Texas
This judgment won’t exist in a vacuum. It comes on the heels of Texas Supreme Court rulings and a change in commentary to the Code of Judicial Conduct clarifying that judges may publicly refrain from performing ceremonies for sincerely held religious reasons. Several justices of the peace statewide have similar disputes with the Commission, and a class action seeking tens of millions in lost income is reportedly moving through the courts. If the state’s enforcement agency thought it could browbeat judges into silence, this ruling says otherwise — and other judges will take notice.
Bottom line: Texas voters and officials should remember that religious liberty isn’t a nice bonus — it’s a protected right. The Commission overreached, the courts corrected it, and Justice Hensley was vindicated. If the state wants respect, it should stop wasting time chasing judges who are trying to honor both the law and their faith. For those worried about access to weddings, sensible solutions like referral lists already exist — and now the law has made clear that conscience matters in courthouses across Texas.
