A federal judge has ordered Kentucky taxpayers to pay more than $220,000 in attorneys’ fees in the case of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis.
Davis sparked national controversy when she was jailed in 2015 for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
U.S. District Judge David Bunning ordered the payments Friday, saying Davis was acting on behalf of the state government when she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples on the basis of her personal religious beliefs.
He ordered the state to pay $222,695 in attorneys’ fees and another $2,008 in costs. He said the county government and Davis herself are not liable.
“Davis represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples. The buck stops there,” Bunning wrote.
Mat Staver, an attorney who represented Davis, says Judge Bunning’s decision will be challenged.
“The part of the ruling that finds the plaintiffs were prevailing parties is contrary to the law because the legislature mooted the case by passing a law that provides for the precise religious liberty accommodation Kim Davis sought. While Kim Davis and Rowan County are not liable for fees and costs, neither is the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and this aspect of the ruling will be appealed,” Staver said in a statement.
