By Hannah Rabinowitz and Holmes Lybrand | CNN
The recent Supreme Court case involving a Colorado web designer who wished to refuse LGBTQ customers has taken an intriguing turn. It was claimed in court filings that a man had approached the web designer for services related to his same-sex wedding. However, the man has now come forward to deny this and clarify that he is straight and married to a woman.
In the court documents, the man was referred to as “Stewart” and was said to have sought graphic designs for invitations and other materials for a same-sex wedding with his fiancé, Mike. CNN managed to contact Stewart, who requested not to disclose his last name as it wasn’t included in the filing.
During an interview with CNN, Stewart expressed his surprise at the situation and stated that he had never requested any services from the company, 303 Creative. He clarified that he has been happily married to a woman for 15 years and doesn’t even know anyone named Mike. As a web designer himself, Stewart finds it unnecessary to hire someone else for web design work.
Stewart first became aware of his involvement in the court record when he was contacted by The New Republic. He finds it concerning that no one involved in the case had attempted to contact him over the past six years to verify the communication mentioned in the court filings. Despite this, Stewart believes that his lack of involvement wouldn’t significantly impact the case, which he referred to as a “tipping point.” He emphasized the need for corroboration and fact-checking in a case of this magnitude.
CNN reached out to Lorie Smith, the web designer, for comment. Kellie Fiedorek, a senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, the legal representation for Smith, stated that Smith does not conduct background checks on incoming requests and does not determine the authenticity of the person making the request. Fiedorek emphasized the importance of challenging unjust laws before facing punishment from the government.
In response to the Supreme Court’s decision, Stewart criticized the outcome, describing it as “disgraceful” and suggesting that the entire case may have been manipulated to achieve a specific result. He believes that as designers, they should be allowed to refuse work for various reasons, but factors such as race, gender, and sexual orientation should not be among them.
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