The man whose inquiry about a gay wedding website formed part of a pivotal Supreme Court case might have been largely fake, a new report alleges. In the case 303 Creative v. Elenis, which is set to be ruled on this week, Colorado web designer Lorie Smith argued that anti-discrimination laws can’t compel her to make a website for a gay couple. To make that argument,Smith and her lawyers from the Christian group Alliance Defending Freedom referenced Stewart, a man described in court filings as one half of a gay couple who inquired about a website for their wedding. The only problem? According to his own account shared with The New Republic, Stewart is straight, married, and never made that request. “I’m married, I have a child—I’m not really sure where that came from? But somebody’s using false information in a Supreme Court filing document,” Stewart, whose name and contact information are listed in the filings, said, according to the magazine. The forthcoming ruling on 303 Creative v. Elenis is expectedto become a landmark decision on LGBTQ discrimination.
