Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Kentucky Clerk Not Budging on Marriage Issue

A county clerk in Kentucky is standing firm in his decision not to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. 

Casey County Clerk Casey Davis has asked Governor Beshear to provide some alternative for clerks who have moral objections to the Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay marriage nationwide. 

Casey County remains one of only three counties in Kentucky that are not issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. 

Davis says he’s tired of being told he’s not doing his job.

"I did take an oath and the oath didn't say in it that I would lay aside my personal beliefs and do my job," Davis told WKU Public Radio.  "The oath does say that I will do this job to the best of my ability, so help me God, and my ability cannot go past what my conscience will allow."

Davis is also refusing to issue marriage licenses to heterosexual couples so that he can’t be accused of discrimination.  He doesn’t see it as an inconvenience since marriage licenses can be obtained in any Kentucky county and not just the county where a couple lives. 

Davis says his constituents can vote him out in the next election, but he will not resign from office as some county clerks in other states have done.

Lisa is a Scottsville native and WKU alum. She has worked in radio as a news reporter and anchor for 18 years. Prior to joining WKU Public Radio, she most recently worked at WHAS in Louisville and WLAC in Nashville. She has received numerous awards from the Associated Press, including Best Reporter in Kentucky. Many of her stories have been heard on NPR.