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Title: Kim Davis, Prisoner of Conscience: RELEASED!
Source:
Breitbart
URL Source: http://www.breitbart.com/big-govern ... isoner-or-conscience-released/
Published: Sep 8, 2015
Author: Austin Ruse
Post Date: 2015-09-08 15:07:08 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 24085
Comments: 191
Judge David Bunning jailed Davis last Thursday after she repeatedly refused to grant any marriage licenses from her office as long as they had to include same-sex couples. Davis cited her religious beliefs in refusing to issue the licenses, even though the Supreme Court imposed same-sex marriage on the country last June 26. In his order issued today Bunning said, “Defendant Davis shall not interfere in any way, directly or indirectly, with the efforts of her deputy clerks to issue marriage licenses to all legally eligible couples. If Defendant Davis should interfere in any way with their issuance, that will be considered a violation of this Order and appropriate sanctions will be considered.” Bunning says he is satisfied that Davis’s staff has so far adhered to his order to issue marriage licenses to all qualified applicants. He has ordered that Davis’s office report to him every 14 days to demonstrate that the office is continuing to follow the order to grant licenses to same-sex couples. He notes that the reports so far have shown the Office of County Clerk of Rowan County no longer puts Davis’s name on marriage liceneses but instead uses “Rowan County” where her name is supposed to go. Davis’s attorney Matthew Staver of Liberty Cousel issued the following statement: “We are pleased that Kim Davis has been ordered released. She can never recover the past six days of her life spent in an isolated jail cell, where she was incarcerated like a common criminal because of her conscience and religious convictions. She is now free to return to her family, her coworkers and the office where she has faithfully served for the past 27 years. We will continue to assist Kim and pursue the multiple appeals she has filed.” There is no word on whether Davis intends to interfere with the issuance of marriage licenses in her office in defiance of the court order. 
After five days in jail, Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis is being freed by the judge who put her there.
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 52.
#3. To: cranky, Liberator, A K A Stone, redleghunter, Vicomte13 (#0)
(Edited)
Case: 0:15-cv-00044-DLB Doc #: 89 Filed: 09/08/15 Page: 1 of 2 - Page ID: 1827 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CIVIL ACTION NO. 15-44-DLB APRIL MILLER, et al. PLAINTIFFS vs. KIM DAVIS both individually ORDER On September 3, 2015, the Court held Defendant Kim Davis in contempt and jailed her for her refusal to issue marriage licenses, directly or through her deputy clerks, in accordance with the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges and this Court's Memorandum Opinion and Order of August 12, 2015. After demanding Defendant Davis to the custody of the U.S. Marshal, five of her six deputy clerks stated under oath that they would comply with the Court's Order and issue marriage licenses to all legally eligible couples. (Docs. #75; 78 at 121-170) On September 8, 2015, Plaintiffs filed a Status Report at the Court's behest. According to the Report, Plaintiffs have obtained marriage licenses from the Rowan County Clerk's Office.1 The Court is therefore satisfied that the Rowan County Clerk's Office is fulfilling its obligation to issue marriage licenses to all legally eligible couples, consistent __________ 1 While the Status Report reflects that Plaintiff's marriage licenses have been altered so that "Rowan County" rather than "Kim Davis" appears on the line reserved for the name of the county clerk, Plaintiffs have not alleged that the alterations affect the validity of the licenses. Nor do the alterations impact the Court's finding that the deputy clerks have complied with the Court's Order. 1 - - - - - - - - - Case: 0:15-cv-00044-DLB Doc #: 89 Filed: 09/08/15 Page: 2 of 2 - Page ID: 1828 with the U.S. Supreme Court's holding in Obergefell and this Court's August 12, 2015 Order. For these reasons, the Court's prior contempt sanction against Defendant Davis is hereby lifted. Accordingly IT IS ORDERED as follows: 1. Defendant Davis shall be released from the custody of the U.S. Marshal forthwith. Defendant Davis shall not interfere in any way, directly or indirectly, with the efforts of her deputy clerks to issue marriage licenses to all legally eligible couples. If Defendant Davis should interfere in any way with their Issuance, that will be considered a violation of this Order and appropriate sanctions will be considered. 2. CJA counsel for the five (5) deputy clerks who indicated they would comply with the Court's Order shall file a Status Report every fourteen (14) days from the date of entry of this Order unless otherwise excused by the Court. Within those reports Counsel shall report on their clients' respective compliance with the Court's August 12, 2015 Order enjoining the Rowan County Clerk from enforcing her "no marriage licenses" policy, as well as its Order of September 3, 2015 requiring them to issue marriage licenses to all eligible couples in compliance with the Court's prior Order. This 8th day of September, 2015. Signed By: G:DATAORDERSAshland Civil201515-44 Order lifting contempt sanction.wpd 2 - - - - - - - - - -
This 8th day of September, 2015. Is that the law?
Here's where the legal wheels fall off. The Kentucky law requires that the Clerk's name appear and that is "Kim Davis." The last I knew, the Federal court can hold a state law unconstitutional, but the judge can legislate a change to state law to authorize and bastardization of the marriage certificate. In short, the bastardized marriage certificates do not meet the requirements of Kentucky state law, and the judges proclamations and orders, and citing that the Plaintiffs have not alleged that the alterations affect the validity of the licenses does not make them valid. If Plaintiffs had that authority, they could have written their own certificates on toilet tissue and proclaimed them valid.
It certainly does seem the marriage licenses are not legally valid. But I suppose being a federal judge, he is not vested in authority in this case to judge whether the marriage licenses being issued are valid. His interest is in only servicing the complaints of the plaintiffs in a civil case, and if they're happy, he's happy. If this judge did not order the deputy clerks to specifically sign the licenses with the county name, then it wasn't his doing. If the plaintiffs come back and complain they aren't valid because they lack Davis' signature, then maybe he'll take further action ordering Davis to sign, she'll refuse and be sent back to jail.
#65. To: Pinguinite (#52)
He does not want that because it would be his admission that no licenses would issue, and he would be embarrassed. He ordered the clerks to issue licenses, They followed his order and issued licenses without fraudulently asserting a grant of authority of Kim Davis that they knew they did not have. Both sides are playing a legal game. It's going on elsewhere as well. Judges are making some obstinate decisions and they are not in jail. SCOTUS invited this stuff. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/oregon-judge-gay-marriages_55e9e757e4b03784e275d182 The judge says marrying gay couples would violate his religious freedom. Mollie Reilly http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/allen-mcconnell-toledo-refuses-gay-marriage By Katherine Krueger An Ohio judge refused to conduct a same-sex marriage in his court this week, the latest instance of local officials refusing marriages on religious grounds in the weeks after the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage nationwide. Toledo Municipal Judge Allen McConnell, who was in the midst of a three-week stint performing civil ceremonies, refused to marry Carolyn Wilson and her partner on Monday. “I declined to marry a non-traditional couple during my duties assignment,” McConnell said in a statement. “The declination was based upon my personal and Christian beliefs established over many years. I apologize to the couple for the delay they experienced and wish them the best.” Jeffrey Atherton says US supreme court has deemed Tennesseans ‘incompetent to define’ marriage as attorney accuses him of ‘unnecessary grandstanding’ A Tennessee judge has denied a divorce petition because of the US supreme court decision allowing gay marriage, leaving a couple married against their wishes. Hamilton County chancellor Jeffrey Atherton denied the couple’s divorce petition last week, claiming the national marriage equality ruling had marred Tennessee’s ability to determine what constitutes divorce. Atherton’s reasoning to deny the petition was that the supreme court had not clarified “when a marriage is no longer a marriage”, the Times Free Press reported. “With the US Supreme Court having defined what must be recognized as a marriage, it would appear that Tennessee’s judiciary must now await the decision of the US Supreme Court as to what is not a marriage, or better stated, when a marriage is no longer a marriage,” Atherton wrote in the order. “The conclusion reached by this Court is that Tennesseans have been deemed by the US Supreme Court to be incompetent to define and address such keystone/central institutions such as marriage, and, thereby, at minimum, contested divorces,” Atherton wrote.
Only by the narrowest possible reading of Kentucky law. Judges can be more expansive in applying the law, in this case, a fundamental right to marry. He had to have ordered it. Or perhaps the attorney general of KY, a Dem named Conway who was defeated by Rand Paul in his 2010 Senate race. A key issue: standing. Can you name a single party that any state or federal court would grant standing to? I can't think of one. Not the people applying for marriage licenses or rejected (they can just go to the next county). Not those who got married and later want a court to annul their marriage so they don't have to get a divorce, not the attorney general of the state, KY's state or federal legislators, etc. In fact, I don't think the federal courts, and certainly not the Supremes, would ever grant anyone standing to challenge the validity of licenses issued in the name of Rowan County, Kentucky instead of the name Kim Davis. Who can demonstrate they have been harmed by the lack of Kim Davis' name on their marriage license? I think anyone trying to challenge would get punished by being drawn into a long and expensive series of legal roadblocks. And get nowhere with their effort. nolu does have a point as far as reading the statutes of Kentucky. But the rights of the Supreme Clerk of Kentucky is never going to outweigh the newly established right to marry from the Supreme Court. And the courts don't have to rewrite all those statutes. Bunning just jumped to the desired outcome and imposed it while warning Davis from trying to use her office to deny anyone their fundamental right to marry.
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY
NORTHERN DIVISION
AT ASHLAND
and in her official capacity, et al.
DEFENDANTS
David L. Bunning
United States District Judge
#5. To: nolu chan (#3)
2. CJA counsel for the five (5) deputy clerks who indicated they would comply with the Court's Order shall file a Status Report every fourteen (14) days from the date of entry of this Order unless otherwise excused by the Court. Within those reports Counsel shall report on their clients' respective compliance with the Court's August 12, 2015 Order enjoining the Rowan County Clerk from enforcing her "no marriage licenses" policy, as well as its Order of September 3, 2015 requiring them to issue marriage licenses to all eligible couples in compliance with the Court's prior Order.
#14. To: A K A Stone (#5)
Is that the law?
1 While the Status Report reflects that Plaintiff's marriage licenses have been altered so that "Rowan County" rather than "Kim Davis" appears on the line reserved for the name of the county clerk, Plaintiffs have not alleged that the alterations affect the validity of the licenses. Nor do the alterations impact the Court's finding that the deputy clerks have complied with the Court's Order.
#52. To: nolu chan (#14)
Replies to Comment # 52. If this judge did not order the deputy clerks to specifically sign the licenses with the county name, then it wasn't his doing.
Oregon Judge Refuses To Perform Same-Sex Marriages
Deputy Politics Editor, The Huffington Post
Posted: 09/04/2015 03:39 PM ED Ohio Judge Refuses To Marry Same-Sex Couple
Published July 8, 2015, 2:54 PM EDT Tennessee judge denies straight couple divorce, citing gay marriage ruling
#80. To: Pinguinite, nolu chan, redleghunter (#52)
It certainly does seem the marriage licenses are not legally valid.
If this judge did not order the deputy clerks to specifically sign the licenses with the county name, then it wasn't his doing.
If the plaintiffs come back and complain they aren't valid because they lack Davis' signature, then maybe he'll take further action ordering Davis to sign, she'll refuse and be sent back to jail.
End Trace Mode for Comment # 52.
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