“Davis represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples”.
In a decision handed down Friday, U.S. District Judge David Bunning wrote that Davis and Rowan County should not be responsible for the fees, arguing instead that the state of Kentucky awarded Davis the authority to issue marriage licenses and could have taken action against her for refusing to issue them to same-sex couples.
In July 2015, four couples – two same-sex and two opposite-sex – represented by the American Civil Liberties Union filed suit against Davis.
A judge has issued a ruling in federal court requiring the state to pay money to couples who were denied marriage licenses by the Rowan County clerk.
Holden went on to say that Davis’ lawyers are engaging in “Olympic-level political spin” by trying to claim that this is a victory for Davis and validation of her decision to break the law in the name of her faith.
But Davis, citing her religious beliefs, refused to comply, even spending a brief stint in jail for contempt of court. That appeared to settle the issue for Davis, who proceeded to issue marriage licenses without her name. Her lawyers, at that time, noted a recurring theme in court filings from homosexuals: punish Kim Davis.
Judge Bunning “rejected holding Davis personally responsible for the debt because, he said, the couples prevailed against her in her “official capacity” as a public official”, the paper adds.
But Davis’ attorney said she will appeal the ruling anyway. He said the case was dismissed as moot after the state legislature changed the law in 2016 to remove the names of county clerks from marriage licenses. The magistrate correctly found that the plaintiffs were not the prevailing parties. He said the ruling would likely put an end to other lawsuits against his client over the marriage-license standoff. “Nor is this case about a county clerk who wanted to relitigate the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, or to prevent Plaintiffs or any other same-sex couple from receiving a marriage license in Kentucky”.
But Bunning said in his latest ruling Kentucky could have pursued criminal charges against Davis or the legislature could have impeached Davis and removed her from office. But Bunning disagreed, saying Davis’ office only issued the marriage licenses after the court ordered her to do it. “The right to act or refuse to act in a manner motivated by a sincerely held religious belief may not be substantially burdened unless the government proves by clear and convincing evidence that it has a compelling governmental interest in infringing the specific act”.
“That is enduring relief”, Bunning wrote.
“We are pleased that neither Kim Davis nor Rowan County are liable for attorney’s fees or costs”, said Mat Staver, Liberty Counsel chairman.