A church trial for a Presbyterian minister ended this morning after a panel decided that the charges against her for conducting the wedding of two lesbians were filed four days too late.

The Rev. Janet Edwards, 56, a minister of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and a pastoral associate at the Community of Reconciliation in Oakland, faced charges for a marriage ceremony she celebrated in June 2005. The denomination's high court has said that clergy in the Presbyterian Church (USA) may bless same-sex couples as long as the ceremony does not resemble a marriage liturgy.

But the Rev. Edwards has been clear that she celebrated a marriage. She argues that there is no ban on same-sex marriage ceremonies because the ruling said clergy "should not" conduct them -- language she believes falls short of a prohibition.

Her trial took place this morning at the Priory, a small hotel on the North Side. The panel of judges -- made up of clergy and elders - voted 8-0 to dismiss the charges after deliberating for 1 1/2 hours.

The panel said the decision does not constitute a vindication of the Rev. Edwards or any kind of decision on the issue at hand. Rather, it was based on the defense contention that the charges were filed four days past the deadline. Charges had to be filed within a year of the date when the investigating committee began meeting on the case, which was in September 2005.

The Rev. Edwards had announced that she welcomed the trial, and had issued formal invitations to the trial and a "worship celebration and lunch" she is holding at the Pittsburgh Golf Club in Schenley Park after the trial's conclusion.

The Rev. Edwards, a former moderator of Pittsburgh Presbytery, has been an activist for gay people in the church since her ordination in 1977. She said she was inspired by the long, devoted relationship between a beloved uncle and his partner.