Kim Davis: Kentucky Clerk Appeals To Supreme Court To Avoid Issuing Gay Marriage Licenses — Gets Shot Down Again

Kim Davis, the Kentucky Clerk who has been making news for her refusal to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples, has been rejected by the highest court in the nation–and the original source of her problems.

After Kim Davis’ request to be exempt from granting gay marriage licenses was denied by the 6th Circuit Court, she took her case all the way to the Supreme Court, who recently ruled that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states. Predictably, the Supreme Court justices ruled against Kim Davis, claiming that the clerk must fulfill her duty of issuing marriage license to all couples or resign her position.

According to NBC News, the Supreme Court rejected Kim Davis’ appeal late on Monday, unswayed by her “undisputed sincerely held religious belief that marriage is a union between a man and a woman, only.” Kim Davis and her lawyers hoped the Supreme Court would reverse the decision made by lower courts, forcing her to issue marriage licenses to gay couples against the will of her religious beliefs, but the high court dismissed the appeal without a second thought. The justices provided no explanation and no dissenting opinions, nor did they request a response from the state.

“The application for stay presented to Justice Kagan and by her referred to the Court is denied,” read the one-line ruling.

Kim Davis got herself into this mess when she stopped issuing marriage licenses all together. She was sued by four couples, two straight and two same-sex, who argued that it was her job to provide marriage licenses no matter her religious convictions. According to NPR, the lawsuits accuse Kim Davis of “[adopting] a policy and/or practice of refusing to issue marry licenses to any couple, same-sex or different-sex, even though they are otherwise legally entitled to marry.”

She has since been ordered to issue licenses to gay couples by multiple authorities, including Kentucky governor Steve Beshear, a federal judge and the 6th Circuit Court of appeals–and still Kim Davis refuses to comply with the law of the land. It’s important to note that Kim Davis does not legally have to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, she only has to do so if she wants to keep her job.

As the Circuit Court wrote in response to Kim Davis’ appeal, “It cannot be defensibly argued that the holder of the Rowan County Clerk’s office, apart from who personally occupies that office, may decline to act in conformity with the United States Constitution as interpreted by a dispositive holding of the United States Supreme Court.”

Kim Davis has not made a public statement in response to the Supreme Court’s rejection, but her lawyer Mat Staver addressed the issue in a quick word to the Associated Press.

“She’s going to have to think and pray about her decision overnight,” Staver said. “She certainly understands the consequences either way. She’ll report to work tomorrow, and face whatever she has to face.”

Do you think Kim Davis should issue marriage licenses to all couples?

[Image credit: Kentucky.com]