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Supreme Court Rejects Kim Davis Appeal, Leaving Same-Sex Marriage Ruling Undisturbed

The unsigned denial leaves lower-court liability rulings against the former Kentucky clerk in place.

Overview

  • The justices refused to hear Davis’s petition seeking both First Amendment immunity from personal liability and a reconsideration of Obergefell v. Hodges.
  • The Court issued a brief, unsigned order with no explanation and no noted dissents, a routine disposition for denied petitions.
  • The lower-court judgments remain intact, including a jury’s $100,000 award to David Moore and David Ermold and roughly $260,000 in attorneys’ fees.
  • Federal courts, affirmed by the 6th Circuit, held that Davis acted as a government official and could not invoke the First Amendment to deny marriage licenses, with some challenges deemed waived.
  • The denial sets no new precedent, and marriage equality also has a federal statutory backstop under the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act.