On-the-spot weddings occurring at LR courthouse

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Multiple weddings are occurring in the Pulaski County courthouse as same-sex couples receive wedding licenses.

Beverly Best and Ashley Mueller were among the couples who wed Monday after the county began issuing the licenses. Julie Gerlinger, an ordained minister and notary public, performed the wedding ceremony in the courthouse rotunda.

Best and Mueller exchanged rings during the brief ceremony and the crowd gathered in the rotunda erupted in cheers after Gerlinger said, “I now pronounce you wife and wife.”

Many ministers offered to officiate ceremonies for free Monday. Photographer Eilish Palmer held a sign offering free photos for the couples.

Palmer says she normally charges $1,000 for weddings but says she knew the couples coming Monday to Little Rock didn’t have time to prepare for a ceremony or photos.