The Supreme Court said Monday that it will not revise its landmark decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, leaving intact the protections granted to couples in 2015 in Obergefell v. Hodges.
The justices rejected an appeal by Kim Davis, a former Kentucky county clerk who was held in contempt after she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs.
The Court refused to hear her appeal without explanation and without any noted dissent, which is not unusual when a court refuses to hear a case.
Still, Davis’ appeal sparked new speculation about whether the court’s conservative majority — including three justices who disagreed with the majority in Obergefell — would agree to rehear the case.
Davis was briefly jailed in 2015 after she refused to issue the marriage licenses, and was ordered by a district court to pay $100,000 in damages to the couple and to cover the couple’s legal costs.
“If a case ever merited review,” Davis’ attorneys said in their appeal, “he should have been the first person thrown in jail after Obergefell for seeking accommodation for her religious beliefs.”
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They also heeded closely the language of Justice Clarence Thomas, who used a concurring opinion in 2022 to urge the court to “reconsider” same-sex marriage and other constitutional protections after it overturned Roe v. Wade.
Yet the profession was considered something of a long-term commitment. It takes four votes to get a case on the docket – quite a heavy burden for the court. The decision also comes as judges have agreed to review a number of politically charged cases in the coming term.
This is a development story. Check back soon for updates.
