(StraightNews.org) – A former Kentucky clerk who denied a marriage license to a gay couple almost 10 years ago has been ordered to pay $260,000 to their attorneys. Kim Davis spent five days in jail for contempt of court when she refused to provide licenses to two gay couples in 2015 because of her religious beliefs. She was a Rowan County clerk when the Supreme Court determined that gay couples could marry, but she would not accept the change and was sued by two couples.
One of those couples was David Ermold and David Moore, who were awarded $100,000 by a federal jury last September. US District Judge David Bunning said the couple “sought to vindicate their fundamental right to marry and obtain marriage licenses, and they did so.”
Liberty Counsel, a group of lawyers representing Ms. Davis, said the fees were excessive and punitive, and they plan to appeal the ruling.
In 2015, when the clerk refused to issue licenses and was sent to jail, hundreds of protestors gathered outside the Carter County Detention Centre to support Davis and her religious stance. Her attorney at the time said she did not object to the issuance of licenses by colleagues but did not want them to bear her name. She was released only after that was arranged.
Months later, the Family Research Council awarded Davis their annual Cost of Discipleship Award and described her as “deep in character” and a woman of integrity. At the event, Davis told reporters that she had quit the Democrats, the party with whom she won election to the clerk position. She later joined the Republicans and said, “The Democratic Party had left us a long time ago.”
Davis received both praise and criticism within her new party. She won the support of Mike Huckabee and Ted Cruz, who said she had struck a blow for religious liberty. Others, including New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, said she was obliged to obey the law.
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