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Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis was back to work in her office Monday morning at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead.
(September 14, 2015)(Photo: Tim Webb, Special to the CJ)
LOUISVILLE —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>As Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis appears in<span style="color: Red;">*</span>two televised interviews this week,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>couples in her high-profile case are<span style="color: Red;">*</span>seeking a new court order to prevent her from altering marriage licenses, a move that has kept her out of jail while also raising questions over<span style="color: Red;">*</span>validity of the forms.
Davis returned to work last week following her release from jail, and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>said she<span style="color: Red;">*</span>will not block a deputy clerk who began providing marriage licenses<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to couples while she was in custody.
However, Davis has modified wording on the licenses<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to remove any mention of her name or office. A<span style="color: Red;">*</span>license<span style="color: Red;">*</span>now states<span style="color: Red;">*</span>that it<span style="color: Red;">*</span>was issued pursuant to a federal court order rather than the county clerk, and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>space normally signed by the deputy clerk is now initialed<span style="color: Red;">*</span>by a "notary public."
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Attorneys for the couples argued in a motion Monday that the alterations create a two-tier system,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>treating<span style="color: Red;">*</span>LGBT couples as<span style="color: Red;">*</span>second-class citizens whose marriages are unworthy of official recognition. The modified forms also create "considerable uncertainty" over the legality of their licenses and marriages, the motion says.
"Her<span style="color: Red;">*</span>intentional creation of such uncertainty surrounding the exercise of a fundamental right<span style="color: Red;">*</span>like marriage —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>an uncertainty not faced by couples in other counties —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>is a significant<span style="color: Red;">*</span>burden and injury that plaintiffs and members of the putative class ought not bear," attorneys wrote.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>"Nor<span style="color: Red;">*</span>should Plaintiffs and members of the putative class have to endure the humiliation and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>stigma associated with the receipt of marriage licenses that are effectively<span style="color: Red;">*</span>imprinted with<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Davis’ opprobrium."
U.S. District Judge David Bunning jailed Davis for six days after she refused to heed a preliminary injunction against her and issue the forms. When Bunning<span style="color: Red;">*</span>released her<span style="color: Red;">*</span>from jail on Sept. 8, he warned Davis<span style="color: Red;">*</span>not to interfere with deputy clerks who had agreed in court to provide the forms over her objections.
According to the motion,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>state law<span style="color: Red;">*</span>dictates<span style="color: Red;">*</span>contents of the form and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>calls for use of a uniform license<span style="color: Red;">*</span>throughout the state. It also<span style="color: Red;">*</span>requires an authorization<span style="color: Red;">*</span>statement from the county clerk and provides no similar authority to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>notaries.
The couples are<span style="color: Red;">*</span>asking Bunning to prohibit Davis from altering any license and direct deputy clerks to issue<span style="color: Red;">*</span>forms without the changes.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Monday's motion argues that violations should<span style="color: Red;">*</span>result in fines and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>placement of the clerk's office into a receivership.<span style="color: Red;">*</span><span style="color: Red;">*</span>It also calls for re-issue of licenses that have been given out since Davis returned to work.
The motion comes as Davis is scheduled to appear in<span style="color: Red;">*</span>interviews with national media.
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ABC World News Tonight promoted a segment Monday that is set to air on Tuesday's edition of Good Morning America.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>According to the promo, Davis was asked what part of the controversy has hurt her most.
Davis told ABC News correspondent<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Paula Faris that<span style="color: Red;">*</span>"what people say about me does not define who I am. That's everybody's opinion and that's everybody's right. I've been called Hitler. I've been called a hypocrite. I've been called a homophobe. I've been called things and names that I didn't even say when I was in the world. Those names don't hurt me. What probably hurts me the worst is when someone tells me that my God does not love me."
Megyn Kelly with<span style="color: Red;">*</span>FOX News also will air an interview with Davis at 9 p.m. Wednesday on the The Kelly File.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>The exchange is expected to touch on whether Davis<span style="color: Red;">*</span>disobeyed a federal court<span style="color: Red;">*</span>order by<span style="color: Red;">*</span>altering marriage licenses.
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