GAY MARRIAGE-KENTUCKY
Kentucky clerks to license marriages as their boss is jailed
ASHLAND, Ky. (AP) — A defiant county clerk has been jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, but five of her deputies have agreed to comply with the law, potentially ending a two-month standoff in Rowan County, Kentucky.
U.S. District Judge David Bunning jailed Kim Davis for contempt after she insisted that “God’s moral law” would not allow her to obey federal court rulings on gay marriage.
The judge later offered Davis a way out of jail. He rejected her lawyer’s argument that deputy clerks cannot act against her authority, and called each one before him to declare their intentions. Faced with potential fines or jail, all but the clerk’s son promised to comply.
The judge said Nathan Davis’ refusal wouldn’t matter and that his mother could go free as long as she promises not to interfere with issuing of marriage licenses to all couples. But Kim Davis rejected the offer, according to her attorneys.
It’s unclear exactly how long she’ll remain in jail. Bunning indicated he would revisit his decision in a week, giving the deputy clerks time to comply with his order.
Sound:
295-w-28-(Steve Coleman, AP religion editor, with attorneys Roger Gannam and Laura Landenwich)–A Kentucky clerk who won’t issue marriage licenses to gay couples could get out of jail if she would let her deputies do it, but is rejecting that accommodation. AP Religion Editor Steve Coleman reports. (3 Sep 2015)
< 281-a-04-(Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, at news conference)-“people of faith”-Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, says Judge Bunning’s ruling confirms the fears of gay marriage opponents. ((note sound quality)) (3 Sep 2015) < 280-a-10-(Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, at news conference)-“citizens are next”-Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, says her jailing sends a chilling message to believers in traditional marriage. ((note sound quality)) (3 Sep 2015) < 282-a-09-(Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, at news conference)-“and one woman”-Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, says her jailing curtails Americans’ religious rights. ((note sound quality)) (3 Sep 2015) < 283-a-08-(Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, at news conference)-“what she believes”-Roger Gannam, Liberty Counsel attorney representing Kim Davis, says she is jailed for being true to her faith. ((note sound quality)) (3 Sep 2015) < 271-a-15-(William Sharp, legal director, ACLU of Kentucky, at news conference)-“from the public”-William Sharp, legal director of the ACLU of Kentucky, says the case establishes an important principle. (3 Sep 2015) < 272-a-02-(Laura Landenwich, attorney for couples suing Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, at news conference)-“her jail cell”-Laura Landenwich, the attorney for couples suing Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, says Davis can go free if she agrees not to interfere with her deputy clerks issuing same-sex marriage licenses. (3 Sep 2015) < 270-a-13-(William Sharp, legal director, ACLU of Kentucky, at news conference)-“issue marriage licenses”-William Sharp, legal director of the ACLU of Kentucky, says Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis doesn’t have to remain in jail. (3 Sep 2015) < 248-a-06-(Alexis Cullen, Rowan County resident who attended hearing, in AP interview)-“more, not apologetic”-Alexis Cullen, a Rowan County resident who attended the hearing, says Kim Davis gave emotional testimony. (3 Sep 2015) < 250-a-07-(The Reverend Randy Smith, friend of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, at rally outside courthouse)-“a major blow (second reference)”-The Reverend Randy Smith, a friend of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, says the judge has violated Kim Davis’s religious rights. (3 Sep 2015) < 249-a-05-(Alexis Cullen, Rowan County resident who attended hearing, in AP interview)-“it’s the law”-Alexis Cullen, a Rowan County resident who attended the hearing, says U.S. District Judge David Bunning said Kim Davis’s religious beliefs don’t exempt her from issuing same-sex marriage licenses. (3 Sep 2015) < 251-a-09-(The Reverend Randy Smith, friend of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, at rally outside courthouse)-“and gay marriage”-The Reverend Randy Smith, a friend of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, says other officials with religious objections to gay marriage will now become targets. (3 Sep 2015) < GAY MARRIAGE-NORTH CAROLINA Some North Carolina officials refuse to perform marriages RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — More than 30 magistrates in North Carolina have refused to perform weddings since a law went into effect allowing officials to refrain from conducting marriage-related activities. The state court system says it’s received notices from nearly 5 percent of the state’s 670 magistrates since a law took effect in June allowing them to opt out of performing all marriages. The law exempts court officials with a “sincerely held religious objection” and is designed for those opposing gay marriage. Only Utah has a similar recusal law. The North Carolina law also applies to some register of deeds workers. Elected officials would perform the duties as a last resort. State Sen. Phil Berger, who sponsored the law, said it is probably preventing situations like the one in Kentucky, where a clerk has refused to issue licenses since the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in late June legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide. The Kentucky clerk, Kim Davis, was ordered to jail Thursday for contempt. 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Plaintiff’s attorney Brady Henderson called Pruitt’s filing “desperate and frivolous.” MASS BAPTISM Pastor: Mass baptism on school football field was voluntary VILLA RICA, Ga. (AP) — The pastor of a Georgia church involved in a group baptism before a high school football practice said Thursday that the school had nothing to do with the ritual, except that it took place on a school football field. The Rev. Kevin Williams, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Villa Rica (VIL’-uh RIK’-uh), said the baptism of 18 students and a coach was voluntary. The Aug. 17 baptisms drew criticism from the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation after the church posted an Internet video of the players being dunked into a small tub of water. The foundation sent a letter to Carroll County school officials that contends the baptisms amounted to “proselytizing,” were coercive and illegal in schools. But Williams said he has no regrets and would baptize others if they wish, though he would not do so if the school asked him not to. As a Southern Baptist pastor, he said, “If they want to get right with God, I’m all in.” Assistant superintendent Terry Jones said in a statement that the school district is taking the “appropriate steps” to investigate. POPE-IMMIGRANTS Immigrants, refugees to receive papal blessing in NYC NEW YORK (AP) — Pope Francis will offer a special blessing to a group of immigrants and refugees in New York, including those who lack legal status. Monsignor Kevin Sullivan, the head of New York’s Catholic Charities, says Francis will meet with about 150 mostly Spanish-speaking New Yorkers on Sept. 25 to discuss “the values and the message that he has articulated as pope.” Pope Francis has made helping immigrants a top priority of his pontificate, decrying what he called the “globalization of indifference” toward migrants and refugees. The pope will address a joint meeting of Congress on Sept. 24, where he is expected to press lawmakers for generous and welcoming policies toward immigrants. Among those the pope will bless at Our Lady Queen of Angels School in East Harlem are youngsters from Central American countries who crossed the border alone, refugees who fled persecution and are seeking asylum, struggling American-born minorities and disabled immigrants. Francis will also meet a group of Catholic schoolchildren. VATICAN-ISRAEL Pope eyes unity, not division in talks with Israel’s Rivlin VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has met with Israel’s president, giving him a bronze medallion calling for reconciliation. President Reuven Rivlin met with the pope for about 30 minutes in Francis’ study Thursday. The Vatican said the meeting, and subsequent talks with the Vatican secretary of state, focused on Mideast peace “and the need and urgency to promote a climate of trust between Israelis and Palestinians, and to restart direct negotiations to reach an agreement that is respectful of the legitimate aspirations of the two peoples.” Reporters said Francis presented Rivlin with the medallion featuring a rock split in two and held together by an olive branch emerging from the fissure. The inscription reads “Look for what unites, overcome that which divides.” MUHAMMAD BILLBOARDS US Muslims hope new billboards reclaim Islam’s message NEW YORK (AP) — New billboards in Boston, New York, San Diego and other cities proclaim what their Muslim backers say is the true message of Islam: peace and justice, not extremism and violent jihad. The New York-based Islamic Circle of North America has erected 100 new billboards over the summer in those cities as well as in Phoenix, El Paso, Memphis and Cleveland. They feature statements such as: “Muhammad believed in peace, social justice, women’s rights” and “Muhammad always taught love, not hate; peace, not violence.” Organizers say the American Muslim community wants to reclaim the message after violent attacks by Islamic radicals, which they denounce as abusing Muhammad’s teachings. STERLING HEIGHTS-MOSQUE Muslim lawyer makes case for proposed mosque near Detroit STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. (AP) — A Muslim attorney has reached out to residents of Sterling Heights, Michigan, in hopes that they’ll have a change of heart and support plans for a new mosque in the Detroit suburb. Dearborn-based attorney Tarek Baydoun delivered a recorded message Wednesday to more than 18,000 homes in Sterling Heights. In the message, he said some residents who oppose the mosque moved to the U.S. in search of religious and personal freedom. He called the anti-Muslim bias of those residents “unacceptable, and fundamentally un-American.” More than 200 people gathered for a protest Saturday at the proposed site of the 20,000-square foot mosque. They said they’re concerned about traffic congestion and lowered property values. City officials are expected to decide on the proposal Sept. 10. JAIL LAWSUIT-MUSLIM MEALS ACLU, CAIR, Muslim inmates sue over Miami-Dade jail meals MIAMI (AP) — A federal lawsuit on behalf of four jail inmates is challenging Miami-Dade County’s refusal to provide meals that meet Muslim religious standards. The lawsuit, filed Thursday, says the policy in place since October 2014 violates the rights of Muslim inmates to exercise their religion and asks a judge to strike it down. The county provides kosher meals for Jewish inmates but not halal meals for Muslims. 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