The U.S. Supreme Court refused a request by Alabama's attorney general on Monday to keep same-sex marriages on hold until it decides later this year whether laws banning gay matrimony violate the U.S. Constitution.

Same-sex couples began marrying in parts of Alabama on Monday, but many state judges refused to grant marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. Reuters reports while court officials in Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery and other large cities issued same-sex marriage licenses, up to 52 of Alabama's 67 counties declined, according to the gay rights group Human Rights Campaign.

At the heart of the unrest is Chief Justice Roy S. Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court. On Sunday, he ordered the state's probate judges not to comply with the federal rulings, reports the New York Times.

It was unclear if the state judges were acting in defiance or because they were uncertain how to navigate in the legal landscape following Justice Moore's order.

"We've got Alabama's chief justice issuing an order, and we've got an order out from a federal judge," Judge Greg Norris of Monroe County said. "It's just a very difficult situation."

The escalating events started when the U.S. Supreme Court said it would not block Federal District Court Judge Callie V. S. Granade's ruling last month that Alabama's marriage restrictions are unconstitutional.

Same-sex couples lined up outside courthouses around Alabama on Monday morning. Some of the marriages were joyous occasions, such as the civil wedding of Dinah McCaryer and Olanda Smith, which was the first at the Jefferson County Courthouse.

Others were occasions of disappointment and frustration, which Beth Ridley and Rose Roysden of Florence experienced firsthand. Judge James Hall of the Florence probate court explained to the women that he would not issue a license, saying, "I'm caught up in the middle of this." Ridley and Roysden have since said they would marry in Birmingham.

Justice Moore, along with many colleagues, believe the federal judiciary has no authority under the Constitution to inquire into a state's laws regarding marriage, the selection of a state bird or anything else. He urged Republican governor Robert Bentley on Sunday to "ensure the execution of the law" by probate judges.

In a statement, however, Bentley said he would "not take any action against probate judges, which would only serve to further complicate this issue."

"At the end of the day, it's still a very simple legal analysis: You've got a federal court order," said Judge Alan L. King of Jefferson County. "This is a happy day for all of these couples, and if you can't be happy for people, then I'm sorry. If someone can't understand the joy and happiness of others, then I don't know what else I can say."

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