The Supreme Court announced Monday that it would not review a case that could have led it to revisit its 2015 decision Obergefell v. Hodges, which made gay marriage a constitutionally protected right. The appeal was brought by the former county clerk Kim Davis, who was held in contempt of court after she refused to issue marriage licenses to homosexual couples.
The appeal was made primarily on the First Amendment grounds of freedom of speech and freedom of religion; Davis argued that her religious beliefs precluded her from complying with court orders. But her lawyers also asked the court to revisit Obergefell, arguing that it was time “for a course correction.”
The request provoked considerable speculation because of the court’s decision in 2022, when the court overturned Roe v. Wade by a narrower reading of substantive due process under the 14th Amendment, the same provision under which the court previously recognized a constitutional right to gay marriage. In a concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas explicitly stated that Obergefell, among other cases decided in accordance with a broader conception of substantive due process, should be reviewed by the court. While three of the dissenting justices in Obergefell remain on the court, at least four need to sign on for a case to be heard.
Read the full article here
