deadparrot posts on democratic underground:

Boston man sues over gay marriage question on bar exam

Source: Boston Globe

BOSTON --A man who claims he failed the Massachusetts bar exam because he refused to answer a question about gay marriage has filed a federal lawsuit, saying the test violated his rights and that his religious beliefs were targeted.

Stephen Dunne, 30, of Boston, is seeking $9.75 million in the suit against the Massachusetts Board of Bar Examiners and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. He was denied a license to practice law in May after scoring 268.866 on the exam, just shy of the 270 passing grade.

Dunne, who is representing himself in the case, refused to answer an exam question addressing the rights of two married lesbians, their children and their property, and claims in the suit that it cost him a passing score.

In the suit, Dunne called the question "morally repugnant and patently offensive," and said he refused to answer it because he believed it legitimized same-sex marriage and same-sex parenting, which is contrary to his moral beliefs.

Read more: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles...

Some great comments on the thread, like "On the Passachusetts Bar Exam, you do not lose points for answers left blank, but only earn points for questions answered correctly." And also "It's really a question about marital property rights & stuff like that. He could have answered the question about "Mary & Joseph" had he wanted, and there wold have been few if any substantive differences."