A Kentucky clerk embroiled in a legal fight over the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples says she will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.
Citing her Christian faith and constitutional right to religious freedom, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has steadfastly refused to issue marriage licenses — even though the Supreme Court two months ago legalized gay marriage throughout the country.
Davis, who refused to grant a marriage license to a gay couple Thursday, said she asked the court to extend the delay of a federal judge's ruling that orders her to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The judge delayed the order until Aug. 31 or until a federal appeals court rules to the contrary. On Wednesday, a federal appeals court upheld the lower court's ruling.
But Mat Staver, founder of the Florida-based Liberty Counsel that represents Davis, said he believes the judge's order is still delayed until Aug. 31.
Staver told The Associated Press he plans to file an emergency petition with the Supreme Court on Thursday or Friday. He wants the court to delay the judge's order until Davis' appeal of a lower court ruling to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals completed, a process that could take several months.
