Town clerk in N.Y. resigns over new gay marriage law

Granby, N.Y. (RNS) Ruth Sheldon was knee-deep in work. As town clerk in
Granby in upstate Oswego County, she was busy with the census of the
town's dogs.

Workers were going door to door, counting canines and letting people
know that every dog over 4 months old needs a license. As the project
progresses, piles of paperwork land on Sheldon's desk for processing.
And then there were those phone calls. "I'm getting so many
distractions from these reporters and so forth that are calling, and I
have an enormous amount of work to do," she said.

The reporters weren't interested in the dog census. They were
calling about her decision to resign her post rather than honor the
state's same-sex marriage law. Her last day is Saturday (July 23) -- the
day before the law goes into effect.