Colorado Settles for $1.5 Million Over Artist’s First Amendment Violation in Landmark SCOTUS Case

Colorado has agreed to pay over $1.5 million in damages after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Lorie Smith, a Christian graphic designer, in a case that has reshaped First Amendment protections. The ruling concluded a years-long battle over whether the state could force Smith to create art that contradicted her religious beliefs.

In June, the Supreme Court ruled that Colorado’s anti-discrimination law violated Smith’s First Amendment rights by compelling her to create same-sex wedding websites despite her religious conviction that marriage is between a man and a woman. Smith, who owns 303 Creative, took her fight to the high court after Colorado’s law made it impossible for her to pursue her desired wedding design services without violating her conscience.

“After enduring Colorado’s censorship for nearly seven years, I’m incredibly grateful for the work of my attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom to bring my case to victory,” Smith said Tuesday. “This is a win not just for me but for all Americans for those who share my beliefs and for those who hold different views.”

Smith’s case follows the high-profile legal battles faced by Jack Phillips, a Christian cake designer targeted by LGBTQ activists for over a decade. Phillips, who owns Masterpiece Cakeshop, became a symbol of the fight for religious freedom after refusing to design cakes that violated his beliefs.

In a related victory for religious liberty, Colorado’s Supreme Court recently dismissed a lawsuit from Autumn Scardina, a trans-identifying attorney who has repeatedly sued Phillips since 2012. Scardina’s requests included cakes celebrating gender transitions and “Satan smoking marijuana,” efforts aimed at forcing Phillips into ideological compliance.

Alliance Defending Freedom CEO Kristen Waggoner praised the Supreme Court’s decision as a landmark victory for freedom of expression. “Government can’t force Americans to say things they don’t believe, and Colorado officials have paid and will continue to pay a high price when they violate this foundational freedom,” she said.

“For 12 years, Colorado has targeted people of faith and forced them to express messages that violate their conscience,” Waggoner continued. “First Amendment protections are non-negotiable. No government has the right to silence individuals for expressing their ideas or punish those who decline to express different views.”

This case highlights the growing tension between anti-discrimination laws and constitutionally guaranteed rights to free speech and religious liberty. While progressive activists continue to challenge these freedoms in court, the Supreme Court’s decision reinforces the principle that individuals cannot be coerced into promoting messages that conflict with their deeply held beliefs.

Smith’s victory sends a clear message: the First Amendment is a shield, not a sword, and Americans’ right to speak or not speak remains a cornerstone of liberty.

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