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RELIGION
Published

Legal pressure may be ahead for law denying service to gays

Associated Press
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    William Hargrove of Winona, stands outside the Governor's Mansion in Jackson, Miss., during a rally where several hundred people called on Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant to veto House Bill 1523, which many believe will allow discrimination against LGBT people, Monday, April 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) (The Associated Press)

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    A young girl holds a Human Rights Campaign equality banner at a rally outside the Governor's Mansion in Jackson, Miss., as several hundred people call on Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant to veto House Bill 1523, which they say will allow discrimination against LGBT people, Monday, April 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) (The Associated Press)

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    Protesters call for Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant to veto House Bill 1523, which they says will allow discrimination against LGBT people, during a rally outside the Governor's Mansion in Jackson, Miss., Monday, April 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) (The Associated Press)

JACKSON, Miss. – The Mississippi governor's decision to sign a law that allows religious groups and some private businesses to deny services to gay and transgender people may have headed off opposition in the state's business community, but it could open the state to lawsuits.

Saying he was protecting religious freedom, Republican Gov. Phil Bryant signed the bill Tuesday without hesitation or fanfare just hours after it cleared its final legislative obstacle Monday.

Reaction from two large business associations which had released statements opposing the bill was muted, although some individual companies are criticizing the decision.

Opponents say they'll consider a legal challenge, and Democratic state Attorney General Jim Hood says he'll make "case-by-case" decisions on whether to defend the lawsuits, warning the bill doesn't override federal law or constitutional rights.