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| Kentucky clerk due in court over gay marriage boycott | Kentucky clerk due in court over gay marriage boycott |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A county clerk in Kentucky who has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on her religious beliefs heads to court on Thursday where a federal judge could hold her in contempt for defying his order to do so. | A county clerk in Kentucky who has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on her religious beliefs heads to court on Thursday where a federal judge could hold her in contempt for defying his order to do so. |
| Lawyers for Kim Davis, the elected Rowan County clerk who is an Apostolic Christian, on Wednesday asked US district judge David Bunning to temporarily block his order requiring her to issue marriage licenses while she appeals the issue. | Lawyers for Kim Davis, the elected Rowan County clerk who is an Apostolic Christian, on Wednesday asked US district judge David Bunning to temporarily block his order requiring her to issue marriage licenses while she appeals the issue. |
| Related: Kentucky clerk is one of three in county refusing to issue marriage licenses | Related: Kentucky clerk is one of three in county refusing to issue marriage licenses |
| Davis has refused to issue licenses to any couples, gay or straight, since the US supreme court in June ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry under the US constitution. | Davis has refused to issue licenses to any couples, gay or straight, since the US supreme court in June ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry under the US constitution. |
| As hundreds of protesters gathered at the courthouse ahead of the hearing, there was no sign of Davis, prompting speculation that she used a gated entrance in the rear to enter the courthouse. | |
| About 100 people stood outside the US district court in Ashland on Thursday morning carrying signs that said: “Kim Davis does not speak for my religious beliefs” and “My gay friends pay taxes, which pay your rent.” | |
| Unlike Davis, her town of Morehead has “many churchgoers” who support equal rights, said Thomas Albert, 25, who waited in line to get a seat in the courtroom. | |
| “Being a Morehead citizen and a taxpayer, I think it’s important she does her job,” Albert told the Guardian. | |
| Across the street, a pair of middle aged men took turns speaking out against homosexuality and shouting Bible verses at the crowd through a public-address system. | |
| Four couples filed a federal lawsuit in July challenging her office policy not to issue licenses and Bunning in August ruled for the couples, finding that Davis had to live up to her official duties as a county clerk despite her religious beliefs. | Four couples filed a federal lawsuit in July challenging her office policy not to issue licenses and Bunning in August ruled for the couples, finding that Davis had to live up to her official duties as a county clerk despite her religious beliefs. |
| Davis has appealed against his order to the US court of appeals for the sixth circuit, which turned down her request for a stay pending appeal last week. The US supreme court on Monday also turned down her request for an emergency stay. | Davis has appealed against his order to the US court of appeals for the sixth circuit, which turned down her request for a stay pending appeal last week. The US supreme court on Monday also turned down her request for an emergency stay. |
| Davis has refused since the supreme court order this week to issue marriage licenses and same-sex couples on Tuesday filed a motion asking Bunning to hold her in contempt of court, seeking fines but no jail time. | Davis has refused since the supreme court order this week to issue marriage licenses and same-sex couples on Tuesday filed a motion asking Bunning to hold her in contempt of court, seeking fines but no jail time. |
| “To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue,” Davis said in a statement this week. “It is about marriage and God’s word. It is a matter of religious liberty.“ | “To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue,” Davis said in a statement this week. “It is about marriage and God’s word. It is a matter of religious liberty.“ |
| The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, which represents the couples seeking the contempt order, said on Tuesday the law is clear. “The duty of public officials is to enforce the law, not place themselves above it,” it said. | The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, which represents the couples seeking the contempt order, said on Tuesday the law is clear. “The duty of public officials is to enforce the law, not place themselves above it,” it said. |
| Related: Kentucky clerk denying licenses to gay couples has married four times | Related: Kentucky clerk denying licenses to gay couples has married four times |
| Davis is represented by Liberty Counsel, a Florida-based Christian religious advocacy organization, which said in court papers on Wednesday an injunction would halt the “irreversible implications on Davis’ conscience” while she appeals the case. | Davis is represented by Liberty Counsel, a Florida-based Christian religious advocacy organization, which said in court papers on Wednesday an injunction would halt the “irreversible implications on Davis’ conscience” while she appeals the case. |
| Kentucky governor Steve Beshear, a Democrat, ordered all county clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but has no authority over Davis’ office. | Kentucky governor Steve Beshear, a Democrat, ordered all county clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but has no authority over Davis’ office. |