Morehead, Ky. • A county clerk in Kentucky has again refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, invoking her religious beliefs and "God's authority" — this time in defiance of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling against her.
On Tuesday morning, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis' office denied the licenses to several couples. At first, Davis was in her office with the door closed and blinds drawn, and her staff said she wouldn't be available. But Davis emerged a few minutes later, telling the couples and the activists gathered there that her office is continuing to deny the licenses "under God's authority."
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to intervene in the case, leaving Davis no legal grounds to refuse to grant the licenses. A district judge could now hold her in contempt of court, which can carry steep fines or jail time. As an elected official, Davis can't be fired.
Davis asked David Moore and David Ermold to leave her office after they were denied a license Tuesday morning — the couple's fourth rejection. They refused, surrounded by reporters and cameras.
"We're not leaving until we have a license," Ermold said.
"Then you're going to have a long day," Davis told him.
From the back of the room, Davis' supporters said: "Praise the Lord! ... Stand your ground."
Other activists shouted that Davis is a bigot and told her: "Do your job."
Davis has said her deeply held Christian beliefs don't let her endorse gay marriages.
She stopped issuing all marriage licenses after the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage across the nation. Two gay couples and two straight couples sued her, arguing that she must fulfill her duties as an elected official despite her personal religious faith. A federal judge ordered her to issue the licenses, and an appeals court upheld that decision. Her lawyers with the Liberty Counsel filed a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court on Friday, asking that they grant her "asylum for her conscience."
Justice Elena Kagan, who oversees the 6th district, referred Davis' request to the full court, which denied the stay without comment.
Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, right, talks with David Moore following her office's refusal to issue marriage licenses at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Although her appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied, Davis still refuses to issue marriage licenses. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Karen Roberts, left, and her partner, April Miller, speak to Assistant Rowan County Clerk Kim Russell as they attempt to get a marriage license at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has refused to issue marriage licenses in defiance of a federal order. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis listens to a customer following her office's refusal to issue marriage licenses at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Although her appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied, Davis still refuses to issue marriage licenses. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
A gathering of same sex marriage supporters, left, and supporters of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, right, face off in front of the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Although her appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied, Davis still refuses to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
David Miller, right, talks with Rowan County Sheriffs Deputy Joe Cline about the possibility of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis being arrested for contempt at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Although her appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied, Davis still refuses to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Surrounded by the media, David Moore, center, and his partner David Ermold attempt to apply for a marriage license at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky., Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Although her appeal to the US Supreme Court was denied, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis still refuses to issue marriage licenses. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
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