Two years after Kim Davis‘s religious crusade against marriage equality from inside a Kentucky government office, taxpayers are now going to be footing the bill.
Davis, who is still the county clerk for Rowan County, became a hero for religious conservatives when she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on her Christian beliefs, after the Supreme Court had already ruled gay marriage to legal. She was briefly jailed for contempt of court as a result.
This Friday, a federal judge ruled that Davis will not have to pay the attorney fees of four couple who she refused marriage licenses to, totaling $222,695. Instead, the state of Kentucky will have to cough up the money. “Davis represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples,” the judge said, according to The New York Times. “The buck stops there.”
“The plaintiffs prevailed by every measure of victory,” he added. “Plaintiffs obtained marriage licenses that could not be revoked. And two of the plaintiff-couples married on those licenses. That is enduring relief. There is nothing more the court could do.”
Although the Kentucky ACLU praised the ruling as a victory for LGBT rights, ACLU Legal Director William Sharp said it’s “unfortunate that Kentucky taxpayers will likely bear the financial burden of the unlawful actions and litigation strategies of an elected official.”
Featured image via TMZ
