Kim Davis' Lawyers: Tweaked Licenses Are Valid

Marriage license changes were approved by governor, AG: lawyers
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 14, 2015 7:19 AM CDT
Kim Davis' Lawyers: Tweaked Licenses Are Valid
In this Sept. 1, 2015, file photo, Kim Davis is seen at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky.   (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)

Kim Davis didn't violate a judge's order when she made a host of changes to marriage license forms in Kentucky's Rowan County, her lawyers say. Couples who sued Davis argued the changes—including the removal of her name and a note that the licenses were issued under authority of a federal court order—didn't follow state rules and made the forms invalid, reports NBC News. They've asked a judge to issue fines or place Davis' office under a receivership, meaning Davis would no longer oversee the issuing of marriage licenses. In court filings, Davis' lawyers say the Kentucky attorney general and Gov. Steven Beshear "both inspected the new licenses and publicly stated that they were valid and will be recognized as valid by the Commonwealth of Kentucky."

A rep confirms Kentucky's attorney general believes the forms are valid, per Reuters. Lawyers representing the couples who sued Davis, however, say they are "a stamp of animus against the LGBT community, signaling that, in Rowan County, the government's position is that LGBT couples are second-class citizens unworthy of official recognition," per the AP. Davis' lawyers say the judge's order didn't mention details the licenses needed to contain and say there are no grounds for a receivership since Rowan County is now issuing licenses to all. "It has never really been about a marriage license—Rowan County has issued the licenses—it is about [the plaintiffs] forcing their will on a Christian woman through contempt of court charges, jail, and monetary sanctions," an attorney says. (More Kim Davis stories.)

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