KENTUCKY: Appeals Court Upholds Contempt Ruling Against Kim Davis For Refusing Marriage Licenses

Via press release from the ACLU:

A federal appeals court today dismissed Kim Davis’s appeals in the Rowan County marriage licensing case. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Miller v. Davis left in place the order that found Davis in contempt.

ACLU LGBT Project Staff Attorney Ria Tabacco Mar has this comment: “Kentucky’s new marriage law goes into effect this Friday, allowing all loving couples to obtain marriage licenses in the state without fear of discrimination. In light of the changes to the law, the court correctly dismissed Kim Davis’s appeals. Notably, however, the court kept in place a lower court order that found Ms. Davis in contempt for defying the law and denying our clients the marriage licenses they were legally promised. We’re pleased that the appeals court kept that decision on the books: It will serve as a reminder to other government officials that placing their personal views ahead of the Constitution and the rule of law is not acceptable.”

As you’d expect, the Liberty Counsel makes no mention of the contempt ruling.

“We celebrate this final victory for Kim Davis,” said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “We asked the federal court of appeals to set aside the lower court injunctions against Kim Davis. The ACLU objected and today the court sided with Kim Davis. The injunctions are gone and Kim Davis received the accommodation that she requested. County clerks are no longer forced to compromise their religious liberty and conscience rights,” said Staver.