Kentucky clerk Kim Davis is reportedly seeking the dismissal of two lawsuits that were filed against her after she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2015.
Liberty Counsel, the non-profit group that represented Davis, has filed two briefs in the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, requesting the dismissal of the 2015 lawsuits Ermold v. Davis and Yates v. Davis.
Both lawsuits, which were filed by same-sex couples who applied for licenses in Rowan County, were dismissed in 2016, but were reinstated after an appeal.
Davis was jailed for five days in August 2015 after a judge found her in contempt of court when she refused to comply with an order to issue marriage licenses with her signature on them.
Later that year, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin issued an executive order removing the names of county clerks from marriage license forms. The executive order was later turned into law by the Kentucky state legislature.
U.S. District Judge David Bunning ruled in 2017 that Davis cannot be held liable for damages sought by the same-sex couples because she was acting on behalf of the state when she refused to issue the licenses. However, an individual case against Davis was allowed to proceed.
The judge ordered Kentucky to pay the plaintiff's legal fees amounting to $222,695, arguing that marriage is a responsibility of the state.
Liberty Counsel said that the plaintiffs would be required to demonstrate that Davis violated a clearly established law in order to succeed in their case.
"Neither Rowan County nor Kim Davis are liable for damages," Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, argued in a press release.
"Kim Davis sought a religious accommodation, and today every Kentucky clerk benefits from her efforts thanks to Gov. Matt Bevin and the entire general assembly. Davis already paid the high price of going to jail to win her battle for a reasonable accommodation of her religious convictions. Today, Kentucky clerks do not have to choose between their faith and the jobs," he added.
In March, Liberty Counsel filed a motion against Bunning, arguing that he did not wait until he had jurisdiction in the case before he ordered the state to pay the legal fees of the same-sex couples that sued Davis.
The law firm also contended that no legal fees are owed because the case was dismissed after Kentucky passed a law that changed the marriage license forms so that the names of county clerks no longer appear on the documents.
Liberty Counsel argued that the case was not about obtaining marriage licenses, but to punish Davis.
"It has never really been about a marriage license – Rowan County has issued the licenses – it is about forcing their will on a Christian woman through contempt-of-court charges, jail and monetary sanctions," Staver previously claimed, as reported by World Net Daily.
