Kim Davis’ Divorces Called Out as She Fights Gay Marriage in Supreme Court
**Kim Davis Faces Criticism Over Multiple Divorces as She Urges Supreme Court to Hear Same-Sex Marriage Case**
Former Kentucky court clerk Kim Davis is under scrutiny from social media users due to her multiple divorces as she pushes the Supreme Court to take up her case challenging same-sex marriage. According to court records obtained by U.S. News & World Report, Davis has been divorced three times.
Davis refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, citing her religious beliefs as the reason for defying the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in *Obergefell v. Hodges*, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. The Supreme Court was expected to consider whether to hear Davis’ case during a closed-door conference scheduled for Friday.
**Social Media Reactions**
Josh Sorbe, a spokesperson for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats, commented on X, stating:
*“The triple-divorced homophobe Kim Davis is back at the Supreme Court today to try preaching ‘sanctity of marriage’ and block LGBTQ+ folks’ right to marry. She’ll lose again, and she’ll hopefully begin to reflect within.”*
Actor John Barrowman also voiced his criticism on X:
*“This B**** Kim Davis who has been married FOUR TIMES, thinks she has the right and moral judgment to challenge my marriage to my husband and other loving couples out there in the Supreme Court.”*
Court records indicate Davis was divorced in 1994, 2006, and 2008, and has since remarried.
**Why It Matters**
In the landmark 2015 decision *Obergefell v. Hodges*, the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the constitutional right to marry. Four justices dissented in the ruling at the time. Among the current court members, Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito remain. Notably, Justice Thomas is the only one who has publicly called for the ruling to be overturned.
**What to Know**
Davis is requesting the Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that ordered her to pay $360,000 in damages and attorney fees to a same-sex couple she had denied a marriage license. In her writ for certiorari, Davis also asks the justices to overturn the *Obergefell* ruling itself.
Her attorneys argue,
*“The damage done by Obergefell’s distortion of the Constitution is reason enough to overturn this opinion and reaffirm the rule of law and the proper role of this Court.”*
Davis defied court orders to issue marriage licenses until a federal judge jailed her for contempt of court in September 2015. She was released after her office authorized the licenses to be issued on her behalf, though she removed her name from the forms. Subsequently, Kentucky enacted a law removing all county clerks’ names from marriage licenses.
Two men residing in Rowan County, Kentucky, sued Davis in 2015 after she denied them a marriage license. Their attorneys contend,
*“Davis is liable in her individual capacity to respondents for damages because she engaged in state action that violated their constitutional rights.”*
**What People Are Saying**
Attorneys for Kim Davis—Mathew D. Staver, Anita L. Staver, Horatio G. Mihet, and Daniel J. Schmid—wrote in their writ for certiorari:
*“Davis could not affix her name to a marriage of same-sex couples because it violates her core religious beliefs. In her sincere belief, the endorsement of her name and authorization equates to approval and agreement.”*
Conversely, attorneys representing the respondents—Michael J. Gartland, Joseph D. Buckles, William Powell, Kelsi Brown Corkran, and Samuel P. Siegel—argue in their brief:
*“Immediately following Obergefell, petitioner Kim Davis did exactly what the Court said was forbidden: she made it the official policy of the Rowan County Clerk’s office to deny marriage licenses to same-sex couples, based on her personal objection to same-sex marriage.”*
**What Happens Next?**
The Supreme Court has yet to announce whether it will take up Davis’ case. The decision on whether to hear the case is anticipated following their upcoming conference.
https://www.newsweek.com/kim-davis-divorces-called-out-as-she-fights-gay-marriage-supreme-court-11014229
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