US clerk jailed over gay marriage stance

She has worked for more than 25 years in the office as a deputy to her county clerk mother before being elected in November without making any waves.

But yesterday, the Apostolic Christian found herself ordered to jail for contempt of court after she told a judge it was against her religious beliefs to grant licenses to same-sex couples.

"My conscience will not allow me," she was quoted as saying by ABC News.

Davis was reportedly removed from the courtroom by federal marshals. US District Judge David Bunning said she could be released if she complies with the order to issue marriage licenses, according to ABC.

The 49-year-old clerk had stopped issuing all marriage certificates in mid-August following the Supreme Court's landmark June 26 ruling legalizing gay marriage.

To her, God lies above all else -- including Washington and the laws put in place by the highest court in the land.

The public servant with long hair and a preference for skirts down to her ankles isn't the only one to have taken such a position.

But Davis has become a symbol for the perennial fight in the United States between modernity and conservatism and between First Amendment rights to freedom of religion and other laws.

- 'No animosity' -

Davis says she is not prejudiced, but simply that her faith trumps all.

"I love my Lord and must be obedient to Him and to the Word of God. I have no animosity toward anyone and harbor no ill will. To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue. It is about marriage and God's Word," she said.

"It is a matter of religious liberty, which is protected under the First Amendment, the Kentucky Constitution, and in the Kentucky Religious Freedom Restoration Act."

At the heart of the media storm over the matter are also two men, David Moore and David Ermold, who came to Davis's office over the summer to get married but were turned away. The two recorded their attempt in a video that went viral. 

Watch the video below:

Davis came out of office briefly to speak to couple (part 1) pic.twitter.com/lzuHysWi0T

— Hillary Thornton (@HillaryWKYT) September 1, 2015

Supporters and detractors gathered in front of the federal court where she had been summoned and subsequently taken into custody, with some telling her to "stay strong" while others cried, "Do your job!"

(Photos: Getty Images)