Kim Davis ordered to pay $260,000 for violating constitutional rights of same-sex couples

A former county clerk, Kim Davis, is in hot water after being hit with a substantial fine for her refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in Rowan County, Kentucky. Despite same-sex marriage being legalized in Kentucky in 2015, Davis adamantly declined to marry two same-sex couples that year.

Davis faced legal consequences in 2015, spending five days in jail until her office eventually granted the licenses without her signature. She subsequently lost her job in 2018. The affected couples filed a lawsuit against Davis, leading to a federal judge finding her guilty of violating their constitutional rights in 2022.

In a significant development, one of the couples, David Ermold and David Moore, were awarded $100,000 in damages last September. The jury concluded that Davis’s refusal publicly humiliated the couple and caused emotional distress. However, the financial repercussions for Davis don’t end there.

US District Judge David Bunning has now mandated Davis to pay an additional $260,000 to cover the attorney fees and expenses incurred by Ermold and Moore during their legal battle. Despite protests from Davis’s legal team regarding the amount, the judge upheld the decision, specifying fees for attorneys Michael Gartland, Joseph Buckles, and the Public Citizens Law Group.

Davis, represented by Liberty Counsel, plans to appeal the ruling. The total fine imposed on her now stands at $260,104.