IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

CHARLOTTE DIVISION


General Synod of The United Church of Christ;
Central Conference of American Rabbis;
Alliance of Baptists, Inc.; Association of
Welcoming & Affirming Baptists; Reverend
Joseph Hoffman; Reverend Nancy Ellett Allison;
Reverend Nathan King; Reverend Nancy Kraft;
Rabbi Jonathan Freirich; Reverend Robin
Tanner; Reverend Mark Ward; Reverend Dr.
Nancy E. Petty; The Very Reverend Todd
Donatelli; The Reverend Canon Thomas
Murphy; Reverend Milly Morrow; Rabbi Lucy
H.F. Dinner; Rabbi Ari N. Margolis; Rabbi Ariel
Edery; Rabbi Eric M. Solomon; Reverend Russ
Dean; Reverend Amy Jacks Dean; Kay Diane
Ansley; Catherine Cathy McGaughey;
Elizabeth Lisa Cloninger; Kathleen Smith;
Shauna Bragan; Stacy Maloney; Cathy Fry;
Joanne Marinaro; Joel Blady; Jeffrey Addy;
Betty Mack; and Carol Taylor;

Plaintiffs,

v.

Roy Cooper, Attorney General of North
Carolina; Drew Reisinger, Register of Deeds for
Buncombe County; Wayne Nixon, Register of
Deeds for Cabarrus County; Tonia Hampton,
Register of Deeds for McDowell County; J. David
Granberry, Register of Deeds for Mecklenburg
County; Laura M. Riddick, Register of Deeds for
Wake County; Ronald L. Moore, Buncombe
County District Attorney; Roxann Vaneekhoven,
Cabarrus County District Attorney; Bradley
Greenway, McDowell County District Attorney;
Andrew Murray, Mecklenburg County District
Attorney; and Ned Mangum, Wake County
District Attorney;

Defendants.
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Civ. No. 3:14-cv-213






Case 3:14-cv-00213-MOC-DLH Document 110 Filed 10/10/14 Page 1 of 5
PLAINTIFFS REPLY TO RESPONSIVE FILINGS BY
DEFENDANTS GRANBERRY, HAMPTON, AND RIDDICK

Plaintiffs, through undersigned counsel, respectfully submit this brief Reply to the
responses filed by Defendants J . David Granberry, Register of Deeds for Mecklenburg County
[Doc. 103], Laura Riddick, Register of Deeds for Wake County [Doc. 105], and Tonia Hampton,
Register of Deeds for McDowell County [Doc. 106] in response to Plaintiffs Motion to Lift the
Stay and Enter the Preliminary Injunction.
1

These Defendants, like the other defendants, do not contest the lifting of the stay or
Plaintiffs entitlement to a preliminary injunction. Moreover, they make clear that they will
execute the duties of their respective offices according to law and comply with all of the Courts
orders. Their responses, instead, ask the Court for additional time before issuing marriage
licenses to same sex couples. Such responses merit this Reply, as they misrepresent the ability of
Registers of Deeds to issue licenses without delay and distract from the ongoing constitutional
violation that is no longer in question.
The Charlotte Observer interviewed Mr. Granberry for a story reported on October 9,
2014 about the prospect of issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples. Contrary to his filing
with the Court, Mr. Granberry stated that he has already crafted a new registration form and
would be able to issue marriage licenses immediately.
2
In his responsive pleading, however,
Defendant Granberry seeks a delay from this Court to allow the State to issue a standard form for
all Registers of Deeds despite the fact that he has a suitable and lawful form ready and
available, eliminating any conceivable need to delay the matter further. Notably, other Registers

1
Counsel for Wayne Nixon, Register of Deeds for Cabarrus County, has informed Plaintiffs counsel that he joins in
the responses filed by Defendants Granberry, Hampton, and Riddick.
2
Mark Price, Mecklenburg County register ready for flood of same-sex marriage licenses, Charlotte Observer,
Oct. 8, 2014 (attached hereto).
Case 3:14-cv-00213-MOC-DLH Document 110 Filed 10/10/14 Page 2 of 5
of Deeds from Union and Gaston Counties informed the Observer that they are prepared simply
to scratch out things on the existing forms to comply.
Defendant Riddick and Defendant Hampton similarly request additional time before
issuing licenses in order to permit the State to produce a new form for marriage licenses.
Defendant Riddick states in her response that she has asked the State for such a form for months
without response. The Court should not permit the failure of the State to provide new forms
despite specific requests from a Register of Deeds in Wake County to delay the enforcement of
the fundamental right to marry.
Plaintiffs respectfully ask the Court to reject these three defendants requests for any
further delay before addressing the constitutional violation at issue. Plaintiffs sought-after
preliminary injunction which has been fully briefed and is ripe for decision will allow those
seeking to marry to decide if they wish to wait for the State to print a new form or to marry
immediately with the forms already prepared by their respective Register of Deeds. Whether a
same sex couple is satisfied by receiving a license with scratched out lines referring to male
and female applicants should be a decision that is theirs to make. Indeed, Plaintiffs are eager
to accept such a license immediately as a lasting record of this historic moment.
Plaintiffs once again urge the Court to issue the preliminary injunction forthwith and
vindicate Plaintiffs right to marry.

Case 3:14-cv-00213-MOC-DLH Document 110 Filed 10/10/14 Page 3 of 5

Dated: October 10, 2014

J onathan S. Martel
David J . Weiner
Samuel Witten
Sarah E. Warlick
Thomas A. Glazer
Arnold & Porter LLP
555 Twelfth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20004
Phone: (202) 942-5470
Fax: (202) 942-5999
Email: jonathan.martel@aporter.com
Admitted Pro Hac Vice

Sean Morris
Arnold & Porter LLP
777 South Figueroa St.
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Phone: (213) 243-4222
Email: sean.morris@aporter.com
Admitted Pro Hac Vice



Respectfully submitted,

/s/ S. Luke Largess
S. Luke Largess
/s/ J acob H. Sussman
J acob Sussman
/s/ J ohn W. Gresham
J ohn W. Gresham
Tin Fulton Walker & Owen
301 East Park Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28203
Phone: (704) 338-1220
Fax: (704) 338-1312
Email: llargess@tinfulton.com
Email: jsussman@tinfulton.com
Email: jgresham@tinfulton.com

Mark Kleinschmidt
Tin Fulton Walker & Owen
312 West Franklin Street
Chapel Hill NC 27516
Phone: (919) 240-7089
Fax: (919) 240-7822
Email: mkleinschmidt@tinfulton.com


ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFS

Case 3:14-cv-00213-MOC-DLH Document 110 Filed 10/10/14 Page 4 of 5
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that I electronically filed the foregoing Motion with the Clerk of the
Court using the CM/ECF system, which will send notification of such filing to all counsel of
record.
Dated: October 10, 2014

/s/ J acob H. Sussman
J acob H. Sussman
Tin Fulton Walker & Owen
301 East Park Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28203
Phone: (704) 338-1220
Fax: (704) 338-1312
Email: jsussman@tinfulton.com




Case 3:14-cv-00213-MOC-DLH Document 110 Filed 10/10/14 Page 5 of 5