Clerks in Kentucky county begin issuing same-sex marriage licenses

Kentucky’s Rowan County issued its first same-sex marriage certificate on Friday, according to reports.

Deputy clerk Brian Mason issued a marriage license to couple William Smith and James Yates that morning, according to The Louisville Courier-Journal.

JUST IN: First gay couples receives marriage license in Rowan Co., Ky., per @courierjournal‘s @MikeWynn_CJ: #KimDavis pic.twitter.com/XmQyf5pSC5

— Phillip M. Bailey (@phillipmbailey) September 4, 2015

The move comes a day after county clerk Kim Davis was found in contempt of court and jailed for refusing to issue same-sex licenses. Davis claimed they violated her religious beliefs.

{mosads}The Courier-Journal said on Friday that Davis remains in jail and is steadfast in her decision.

“She won’t resign, I promise you,” her husband, Joe Davis, told the news publication. “Until something gives, she’ll be there.”

Joe Davis added that five out of six of Rowan County’s remaining clerks told him on Thursday evening they plan on issuing same-sex marriage certificates going forward. Kim Davis’s son is reportedly the lone holdout and considering joining his mother in jail.

The Courier-Journal also reported on Friday that two more couples are petitioning for their own same-sex marriage licenses later that morning. Rowan County clerks starting to issue such certificates, it added, could pave the way toward Kim Davis’ release from jail.

Joe Davis also criticized Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear (D) on Friday for refusing to call a special session and rewriting state law on marriage certificates there.

“You ain’t no governor because you have no backbone,” he said of Beshear, according to the Post-Courier.

“We don’t want no violence at all,” Joe Davis added of the controversy. “And we don’t hate these people. That’s the farthest thing from our hearts.”

Critics say Kim Davis’s decision ignores federal law established in the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges earlier this summer. Supporters counter that forcing Davis into recognizing the practice violates her religious liberty, given she believes same-sex marriage is morally wrong.

This story was updated at 9:00 a.m.