Lesbian mother in DeKalb County loses appeal; Christian judge remains on case

Lesbian mother in DeKalb County loses appeal; Christian judge remains on case

A lesbian mother in DeKalb County recently lost her appeal to have a Christian judge removed from her divorce case because of his beliefs, according to The Christian Post.

Tiara Lycans had filed two motions earlier this year requesting Judge Shaunathan Bell to recuse himself from the case on the grounds that his conservative Christian beliefs might color his treatment of her custody case.

According to the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals, Lycans did not say that Bell was “actually biased against her because she is a lesbian,” but she had expressed a concern that his publically stated beliefs might make him partial. She brought up his 15 years of service as a preacher to back her claim.

Bell refused her recusal requests both times, and the appeals court denied her appeal too, according to AL.com.

No ‘reasonable basis’

Lycans and her husband, Zachary Lycans, had received joint custody of their child, something the court cited in their denial of her request. Bell had ruled the same way in two other cases involving lesbian mothers, according to the Post.
With those things in mind, “a reasonable person” would not have a “reasonable basis for questioning Judge Bell’s impartiality in the divorce action.”

Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Christian group Family Research Council, said the case was part of the continued effort to “drive men and women of faith out of public life,” but he praised Bell’s refusal to step down from the case.

“In this age of ‘diversity,’ it’s becoming more and more clear that the only group that it’s acceptable to attack is Christians,” Perkins said, according to the Post. “That must be aggressively fought — in Alabama and everywhere.” (TAB)