Gay marriage case began with unusual call (AP)

OLYMPIA, Wash. - With the far-off peal of wedding bells for gay couples growing louder and local pressure mounting, Ron Sims found himself in a legal bind in early 2004. The King County executive felt he couldn't just ignore a state ban on gay nuptials — no matter how much he wanted to issue marriage licenses. However, Sims reasoned, he could try to get the law thrown out. That's when gay-marriage advocate Lisa Stone got a very unusual phone call from an intermediary, who asked: Would you ...