Jailed
Kentucky clerk seeks emergency injunction in gay marriage case
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[September 08, 2015]
By Steve Bittenbender
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - Lawyers for
jailed Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis said on Monday they had asked an
appellate court to force Governor Steve Beshear to let her refuse to
issue same-sex marriage licenses based on her religious convictions.
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The lawyers sought emergency relief from the 6th Circuit Court of
Appeals, asking it to grant Davis an exemption from the "governor's
mandate that all county clerks issue marriage licenses," the
non-profit legal advocacy group Liberty Counsel, which represents
Davis, said in a news release.
"The governor’s refusal to take elementary steps to protect
religious liberties has now landed Kim Davis in jail," Liberty
Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver said.
The lawyers sought the injunction on the fifth day that Davis, 49,
was in jail for contempt of court after defying U.S. District Judge
David Bunning's orders to issue licenses to same-sex couples because
as an Apostolic Christian she opposes gay marriage.
"As a prisoner of her conscience, Davis continues to request a
simple accommodation and exemption from Governor Beshear, who is
overseeing Kentucky marriage policy," said the emergency request for
an injunction.
Outside Carter County Detention Center in Grayson, where Davis was
being held, about 150 supporters gathered, local media reported. On
Tuesday, Republican president hopeful Mike Huckabee was expected to
hold a rally in support of Davis outside the jail.
A group of about 30 demonstrators descended on Bunning's
neighborhood in a Cincinnati suburb in northern Kentucky to pass out
fliers in support of Davis, said Lieutenant Casey Kilgore of the
Fort Thomas Police Department.
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"(We're) encouraging all the neighbors to pray for David Bunning to
let Kim Davis go," protest organizer Cal Zastrow said.
The exemption would cover all marriage licenses. The lawyers in
their court filings on Monday referred to some of the options they
have suggested other than mandating the clerk's name on all marriage
licenses. They ranged from having the county judge executive issue
the licenses to allowing a deputy clerk to issue them devoid of
Davis's name or authority as Rowan County Clerk.
(Reporting by Steve Bittenbender; Editing by Barbara Goldberg and
Cynthia Osterman)
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