Kim Davis, a Kentucky county clerk found herself behind bars after she refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. The county clerk who was taken into custody on Thursday was released soon afterwards, but still stood by her stance of not wanting to issue any marriage licenses because it goes against her religious beliefs.
Talking to ABC News, Davis told reporters, “I can’t put my name on a license that doesn’t represent what God ordained marriage to be.” While Davis says she never expected to become a household name in Kentucky, she has no intentions of taking back her decision.
Davis admits that while she hasn’t been a good person, in that, she has married four times and has children in an adulterous relationship; she does not consider herself to be a hypocrite because of her recent actions.
According to Davis, who found God four years ago and was elected as Rowan County clerk last November, her beliefs in her faith trump her daily responsibilities and apparently also her duties as a county clerk. On answering a question on whether or not she will keep her position despite all of the name calling and challenges, Davis simply replied, “I’m good at my job.”
She also said that whatever people say about her is their opinion, it doesn’t affect her, and having an opinion is everyone’s right. Getting a bit emotional, Davis did say that what hurts her the most, is when someone tells her that God does not love her and is not happy with what she has done. While on one side Davis has been met by strict opposition in the gay community, on the other hand, there have been many who have expressed their support for the county clerk and her stance on gay marriage.
Davis was quick to disagree by a statement which was made by some protestors who said that they were not being treated in a dignified way by not receiving a marriage license. According to Davis, dignity is something which comes from within a person and is not guaranteed in the Constitution of the United States. She also said that it made her sad to think that people did not feel dignified as a human being until they received a piece of paper.
But, it seems like trouble is always around the corner for the Rowan county clerk who spent a week in jail, as new reports have surfaced that Davis may have issued invalid marriage licenses to dozens of couples in the past.
According to the lawyer of the deputy Rowan County court clerk, Brian Mason, Davis had replaced old marriage license forms with new ones that didn’t have her name or the name of the county, or in fact, any other reference to a clerk or deputy clerk for that matter.
While the authorities are looking into the matter, Davis’s lawyer, Mat Staver issued a statement on Saturday saying that no new developments have been made with the report. According to Staver, Davis did say that her name would no longer be on the forms and the Governor did say that the forms were valid later on the same day.
This recent incident has without a doubt, opened up fresh wounds in what seems to be an emotional court battle over the right to have same sex marriages. The couple has sued Davis for not giving them a marriage license, despite the fact that the Supreme Court ruling has legalized gay marriage across the US. And as if Davis didn’t have enough trouble, the ACLY lawyers for the couple who sued Davis are now urging the judge to allow the lawsuit to take class action status, meaning, more bad news for the devout Christian.
Be the first to comment on "Defiant County Clerk Refuses License for Same-Sex Marriage on Religious Grounds"