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Jailed Kentucky County Clerk Appeals Contempt Ruling

Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and was jailed on Thursday, is appealing the order that put her behind bars.

The Rowan County clerk had been ordered by a court to abide by the Supreme Court decision that made same-sex legal across the country. She refused, filing a series of appeals — and requesting a stay of the order from the Supreme Court, which was denied.

On Thursday, District Judge David Bunning found her in contempt of court and ordered she be held in custody until she complied with the order.

That's the decision that inspired the latest notice to appeal, filed by her lawyers on Sunday. While the notice didn't indicate a line of reasoning, Davis' legal team seemed to indicate they would argue the contempt of court ruling was a violation of due process.

"Mrs. Davis is entitled to proper notice and due process when she is threatened with the loss of her freedom. There was no indication that she would be incarcerated," lawyer Mat Staver said in a statement.

Davis' legal team had argued that a contempt ruling would violate her due process earlier this week, to no avail.

As NPR's Eyder Peralta reported for Weekend Edition Sunday, not everyone in Rowan County is pleased with Kim Davis' stand. The town of Morehead, in the heart of the county, is an accepting place, resident Donna Lemley-Jordan told Eyder.

"For one person and then a few supporters to put us on the map for this is really sad," she said.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Camila Flamiano Domonoske covers cars, energy and the future of mobility for NPR's Business Desk.