Woman Who Refused to License Gay Couple Sent to Prison

The Christian Kentucky county clerk who has become a symbol of religious opposition to same-sex marriage was jailed Thursday after defying a federal court order to issue licenses to gay couples.

The clerk, Kim Davis of Rowan County, Ky., was ordered detained for contempt of court and later rejected a proposal to allow her deputies to process same-sex marriage licenses that could have prompted her release.

She was summoned to court on Thursday to testify before the federal Judge David L. Bunning and reiterated that she can’t issue marriage licenses to same sex couples, that it was against her Christian beliefs.

“My conscience will not allow me,” she said over and over again as she cried. She had maintained that marriage should be between one man and one woman.

Stating that her reason was ‘insufficient’, the judge sent her to jail until she changes her mind and agrees to issue the licenses.

The ruling has spurred controversies. Mat Staver who represents Davis said:

“Everyone is stunned at this development. Kim Davis is being treated as a criminal because she cannot violate her conscience. While she may be behind bars for now, Kim Davis is a free woman. Her conscience remains unshackled.”