Gay couple turned away 3rd time by Rowan clerk

MOREHEAD, Ky. James Yates and William Smith Jr., a couple of nearly 10 years, left the Rowan County Courthouse on Thursday frustrated and angry after clerks refused them a marriage license for a third time in recent weeks.

But the pair promised to return.

"It's just making us want to press more," Yates said. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis “can’t get away with this because it will open the door for so many other rights to be just thrown away.”

Yates and Smith are among a handful of gay and straight couples who are still battling for marriage licenses in Rowan County two months after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that marriage is a constitutional right.

On Wednesday, judges with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to stay an injunction against Davis, who has refused to issue licenses to all couples since the Supreme Court decision.

However, a deputy clerk told Yates and Smith on Thursday that the office is still subject to a temporary stay that won’t expire until Monday and that he was instructed not to provide the paperwork.

Yates was fighting back tears.

“They don’t like gays, and they don’t want them to get married,” he said outside. “And they will burn the earth and not let straight people in Rowan County get married either.”

Smith said Davis is now blatantly breaking the law and hiding behind religion to discriminate – the last thing he expected in Morehead, which has always remained open to the LGBT community, he said.

“We should be celebrating right now, enjoying our lives together and enjoying the fact that we could spend our lives together and have it recognized by our country,” Smith said. “Now we are just kind of on nerves.”

Davis argues that signing off on the licenses for same-sex couples violates her beliefs as an Apostolic Christian.

U.S. District Court Judge David Bunning granted a preliminary injunction against Davis this month, writing that her religious convictions do not excuse her from performing official duties and upholding her oath of office. But Davis has appealed the order.

She also sought to stay the 6th Circuit, which denied that request after finding that there is "little or no likelihood that the clerk in her official capacity will prevail on appeal."

Bunning had issued a temporary stay until the 6th Circuit ruled. Yates and Smith argued that the 6th Circuit's decision on Wednesday now takes precedent, requiring Davis to provide the forms.

But Mat Staver, founder and chairman of the Liberty Counsel, a legal group that focuses on religious freedom issues and is representing Davis, said that the temporary stay remains in effect until the end of the day Monday.

He said a settlement has been proposed in a related suit against Gov. Steve Beshear, which could resolve the issue. The group wants Beshear to remove the names of clerks from marriage licenses through an executive order, but nothing has been finalized.

“That would be an easy fix for him to do,” Staver said.

The Liberty Counsel also plans to request a stay from Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, who is assigned to the 6th Circuit and ruled with the majority in the recent same-sex marriage case.

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing on behalf of several couples who were denied licenses in Rowan County. It was unclear Thursday if they might ask Bunning to find Davis in contempt of court.

One attorney with the group, Dan Canon, said in an email that he couldn’t comment, but indicated that attorneys plan to address Davis’ continued refusal.

Yates and Smith said they will try again next week after the temporary stay expires. However, Yates argued that, even if judges continue to rule in favor of the couples, Davis and her attorneys will find ways to stall.

“They are ignoring this ruling,” he said. “Why would they follow the next one?”

A small group has protested the policy outside the courthouse daily, and demonstrators say they are planning a large rally on the courthouse lawn on Saturday.

Rachelle Bombe, one of the protestors, predicted that Davis “will not stop. She is the terminator.”

“A lot to people are being hurt,” Bombe said. “There are so many wonderful couples that want to be married, and they can’t get married. And some of them have waited an entire lifetime to get married so it is very sad.”

Two other clerks in Kentucky are denying licenses, including Casey County Clerk Casey Davis, who announced Thursday that he is riding a bicycle across Kentucky — from Pikeville to Paducah — to show support for Kim Davis.

The two are not related, even though Casey Davis called Kim his sister in a statement, implying that she might face jail time for turning away couples.

"I cannot let my sister go to jail without my doing something to let others know about her plight," he said.

Casey Davis began the ride at 4:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the Family Foundation, which released the announcement.

Reporter Mike Wynn can be reached at (502) 875-5136. Follow him on Twitter at @MikeWynn_CJ.