Lawyers For Jailed Kentucky Clerk Cite Religion As A Disability Under The ADA

WASHINGTON, District of Columbia — Lawyers for Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who remains in jail because she stubbornly refuses to comply with a Supreme Court ruling to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, filed an emergency request for reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) so that Ms. Davis can return to work.

Earlier today, Horatio Mihet, senior litigation counsel with Liberty Counsel, a conservative, evangelical Christian boutique law firm specializing in cases involving religious persecution, issued a statement requesting the governor of Kentucky issue special orders to allow Ms. Davis to return to work and not be compelled to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

“We would like them to release her from jail and provide reasonable, sensible ADA accommodation so she can do her job,” Mr. Mihet said in the statement.

Also today, Mathew D. Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, appeared on several media outlets to support that statement. Appearing on The Today Show, Mr. Staver said the facts are clear that Ms. Davis “has limitations that handicap her ability to perform her job.”

“And we are only asking for a simple, reasonable ADA accommodation,” Mr. Staver said. “And that would be taking her name off of marriage licenses in Rowan County and allowing her deputies to issue the licenses.”

On a website, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defines reasonable accommodations under the ADA.

“Title I of the ADA requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities who are employees or applicants for employment, unless to do so would cause undue hardship. In general, an accommodation is any change in the work environment or in the way things are customarily done that enables an individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities.”

On The Today Show, Mr. Staver said Ms. Davis’ hardship was “clearly her religious conscience.” “Issuing same-sex marriage licenses would irreparably and irreversibly harm her conscience,” he said.

A ruling on the request is expected sometime this week.