Since the decision in Obergefell, Kim Davis, the county clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky, has refused to issue (and refused to allow any assistant clerk to issue) marriage licenses to any couple in order to avoid issuing a marriage license to a same-sex couple. Couples were instead directed to obtain licenses from clerks in adjoining counties. Couples denied licenses sued the clerk, and the clerk filed a third-party complaint against the governor, who had instructed all county clerks to abide by the Supreme Court decision. In her suit, the clerk raised both free speech and free exercise claims.
Wednesday, the court issued its opinion. In it, the court said that the clerk’s religious convictions do not excuse her from performing the duties of her office and enjoining her no-marriage-license policies. Issuing the license, the court said, “does not require a county clerk to condone or endorse same-sex marriage on religious or moral grounds. It simply asks the county clerk to certify that the information provided is accurate and that the couple is qualified to marry under Kentucky law. Davis’ religious convictions have no bearing on this purely legal inquiry.” The court enjoined the clerk’s continued application of the “no licenses” policy. Liberty Counsel, which represented the clerk, immediately filed an appeal and applied for a stay. USA Today reports that, despite the court order and on the advice of counsel, the clerk’s office continues to refuse to issue any licenses. The case is Miller v. Davis, no. 15-44-DLB (E.D. Ky.). The clerk's complaint is at https://www.liberty.edu/media/9980/attachments/2015/080515_Complaint_-_Davis_Third_Party_Complaint_against_Gov_Beshear_FINAL.pdf,<https://www.liberty.edu/media/9980/attachments/2015/080515_Complaint_-_Davis_Third_Party_Complaint_against_Gov_Beshear_FINAL.pdf.> the court's opinion and order is at http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/wvxu/files/201508/miller_v._davis.pdf, and the USA Today story is at http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/08/13/ky-clerk-defies-order-gay-marriage-license/31618349/. Phillip M. Sparkes Local Government Law Center ________________________________
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