Gay marriage: Alabama counties join Texas to defy US Supreme Court by blocking same-sex unions

Alabama is the second state in the nation to defy the US Supreme Court ruling making gay marriage legal throughout America.

Just as the top Texas law official told city clerks it was fine to refuse to marry gay couples, 22 counties in Alabama are also denying gays' request to wed. That's nearly a third of Alabama that's refusing same-sex licences or shutting down marriage operations entirely, reports Associated Press.

"It's perplexing to me that they are not able to do their job," Democratic Alabama Congresswoman Patricia Todd told AP. "Unfortunately, I think it's probably going to continue until one gets sued and thousands of taxpayer dollars are spent on a lawsuit they are going to lose."

The Alabama Supreme Court has asked probate judges and conservative groups to file motions and briefs addressing the "effect" of the Supreme Court's decision on an injunction prohibiting same-sex marriages that the state court issued in March.

Individual counties in other states, including Louisiana, Tennessee, and Kentucky, are also refusing to follow the top court's decision.

Texas state Senator Rodney Ellis has called on the US Department of Justice to "monitor" the state and "intervene, if necessary, to ensure that Texas officials do not flout the Supreme Court's ruling and blatantly discriminate against same sex couples."