Tue. September 1, 2015
The Supreme Court on Monday denied a Kentucky clerk's request to block a judge's ruling ordering her to issue marriage licenses to all eligible couples.
Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis turned to the nation's highest court after an appeals court denied her request.
In her emergency application to Justice Elena Kagan – who referred the request to the full court – Davis asked for "asylum for her conscience."
"[Davis] holds an undisputed sincerely-held religious belief that marriage is a union between a man and a woman, only," Davis' lawyers argued. "Thus, in her belief, SSM [same-sex marriage] is not, in fact, marriage."
Rather than serve gay and lesbian couples after the Supreme Court struck down gay marriage bans in all 50 states, Davis stopped issuing marriage licenses to all couples.Four couples, two of whom are gay, filed a lawsuit.
If Davis does not comply with the order, she could face fines or jail time.
"She's going to have to think and pray about her decision overnight," Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, the Christian conservative law group that is representing Davis, told the AP on Monday. "She'll report to work tomorrow, and face whatever she has to face."
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