US | interracial marriage Pastor Dumps Interracial Couple Ban Brings issue to local church council By Matt Cantor Posted Dec 5, 2011 6:24 AM CST Copied Stella Harville and her fianc?, Ticha Chikuni, pose for a picture in Richmond, Ky. The couple prompted a vote to ban interracial couples at the church. (AP Photo/Stella Harville, File) A Kentucky pastor has nullified a vote by his church to ban interracial couples, he says. “As far as I'm concerned and the church is concerned, this case will be closed as of tomorrow,” said Stacy Stepp on Saturday, after raising the issue with a council of local church leaders. The group ruled that the vote had no weight because parishioners hadn’t followed proper voting rules, ABC News reports. Stepp opposed the vote in the first place, he told the Lexington Herald-Leader. Read These Next A House Democrat faces expulsion on ethics charges. One entity that's pretty popular right now: the Catholic Church. NFLer who once vanished before a Super Bowl dies at 52. An icon of '70s soft rock has left us. Report an error