Kim Davis, the clerk who on Thursday was jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples in Rowan County, Kentucky, said Friday that marriage licenses issued while she has been in jail are void and “not worth what they are written on” because she didn’t authorize them.
Mrs. Davis’ attorney Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel told reporters that his client is in good spirits and “has already been doing Bible studies with herself” in jail. He said Mrs. Davis is prepared to stay locked up as long as it takes to uphold her religious freedoms, the Chicago Tribune reported.
“She’s not going to resign, she’s not going to sacrifice her conscience, so she’s doing what Martin Luther King Jr. wrote about in his letter from the Birmingham Jail, which is to pay the consequences for her decision,” Mr. Staver said.
Mr. Staver is preparing to appeal U.S. District Judge David Bunning’s contempt finding for Ms. Davis.
At least three gay couples received marriage licenses from the Rowan County clerk’s office on Friday after being turned away by Mrs. Davis before her arrest on Thursday.
The couple’s attorneys, along with Rowan County Attorney Cecil Watkins, said the marriage licenses are valid.
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The licenses, however, are missing the elected clerk’s signature, an omission that Judge Bunning said could be problematic for the couples that received them. He told reporters it was up to those gay couples to take that chance.
Mrs. Davis has refused to issue any marriage licenses rather than comply with the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide. After ordering her to jail, Judge Bunning told her six deputy clerks that they too faced potential fines or jail time if they also refused to issue the licenses. All but one — Mrs. Davis’ son, Nathan Davis — agreed to end the standoff.
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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