By — Joshua Barajas Joshua Barajas Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/gay-kentucky-couple-granted-marriage-license-as-county-clerk-kim-davis-remains-jailed Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Gay couple in Rowan County granted marriage license, as county clerk Kim Davis remains jailed Nation Sep 4, 2015 10:18 AM EDT Deputy clerks of Rowan County, Kentucky began issuing licenses to same-sex couples on Friday after their boss was held in contempt for her refusal to do so. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, a 49-year-old Democrat, remained jailed Friday as her deputies issued a license for James Yates and William Smith Jr., whose applications were denied five times previously, the Washington Post reported. First gay marriage couple, William Smith Jr and James Yates receive marriage license in Rowan Co. @heraldleader pic.twitter.com/eGskPZuKa0 — HeraldLeaderPhoto (@HLPhoto1) September 4, 2015 “I just want the licenses given out. I don’t want her in jail. No one wanted her in jail,” Yates said. An hour later, deputy clerks issued a marriage license to a second couple, Timothy and Michael Long, the Associated Press reported. And although the licenses were issued without Davis’ signature, the county attorney and the gay couples’ lawyers said they were legal, the AP reported. U.S. District Judge David Bunning jailed Davis for contempt of court Thursday, ending her months-long standoff against the Supreme Court’s ruling to legalize gay marriage in June. Davis has said that she was acting under “God’s authority” in her refusal to issue licenses. Davis, an Apostolic Christian, joins two other county clerks out of Kentucky’s 120, that have said they do not recognize gay marriages because of their Christian beliefs, The New York Times reported. Rowan County clerk Kim Davis is shown in this booking photo provided by the Carter County Detention Center in Grayson, Kentucky September 3, 2015. Davis was jailed on Thursday for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, and a full day of court hearings failed to put an end to her two-month-old legal fight over a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding same-sex marriage. Photo courtesy of Carter County Detention Center/Handout via Reuters Five of the six deputy clerks in Kentucky county agreed under oath on Thursday to begin issuing licenses. Davis’ son, Nathan, refused to comply. The couples who had sued Davis said they preferred that the county clerk be fined, not jailed. The plaintiff’s attorneys offered a proposal Thursday to Bunning to release Davis if she allowed her deputies to grant licenses to gay couples. Davis rejected the offer. Davis was taken away Thursday to the Carter County Detention Center. Davis’s husband, Joe, was at the courthouse Friday and said his wife would remain in jail for “as long as it takes.” He added that his wife had no plans to resign. Correction: The headline was changed to better reflect that Yates and Smith Jr. were granted the first marriage license in Rowan County, since Kim Davis’ refusal to issue them to gay couples. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Joshua Barajas Joshua Barajas Joshua Barajas is a senior editor for the PBS NewsHour's Communities Initiative. He's also the senior editor and manager of newsletters. @Josh_Barrage
Deputy clerks of Rowan County, Kentucky began issuing licenses to same-sex couples on Friday after their boss was held in contempt for her refusal to do so. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, a 49-year-old Democrat, remained jailed Friday as her deputies issued a license for James Yates and William Smith Jr., whose applications were denied five times previously, the Washington Post reported. First gay marriage couple, William Smith Jr and James Yates receive marriage license in Rowan Co. @heraldleader pic.twitter.com/eGskPZuKa0 — HeraldLeaderPhoto (@HLPhoto1) September 4, 2015 “I just want the licenses given out. I don’t want her in jail. No one wanted her in jail,” Yates said. An hour later, deputy clerks issued a marriage license to a second couple, Timothy and Michael Long, the Associated Press reported. And although the licenses were issued without Davis’ signature, the county attorney and the gay couples’ lawyers said they were legal, the AP reported. U.S. District Judge David Bunning jailed Davis for contempt of court Thursday, ending her months-long standoff against the Supreme Court’s ruling to legalize gay marriage in June. Davis has said that she was acting under “God’s authority” in her refusal to issue licenses. Davis, an Apostolic Christian, joins two other county clerks out of Kentucky’s 120, that have said they do not recognize gay marriages because of their Christian beliefs, The New York Times reported. Rowan County clerk Kim Davis is shown in this booking photo provided by the Carter County Detention Center in Grayson, Kentucky September 3, 2015. Davis was jailed on Thursday for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, and a full day of court hearings failed to put an end to her two-month-old legal fight over a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding same-sex marriage. Photo courtesy of Carter County Detention Center/Handout via Reuters Five of the six deputy clerks in Kentucky county agreed under oath on Thursday to begin issuing licenses. Davis’ son, Nathan, refused to comply. The couples who had sued Davis said they preferred that the county clerk be fined, not jailed. The plaintiff’s attorneys offered a proposal Thursday to Bunning to release Davis if she allowed her deputies to grant licenses to gay couples. Davis rejected the offer. Davis was taken away Thursday to the Carter County Detention Center. Davis’s husband, Joe, was at the courthouse Friday and said his wife would remain in jail for “as long as it takes.” He added that his wife had no plans to resign. Correction: The headline was changed to better reflect that Yates and Smith Jr. were granted the first marriage license in Rowan County, since Kim Davis’ refusal to issue them to gay couples. We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now