Draft:David Ermold

David Ermold is a member of the LGBTQ community and a professor at the University of Pikeville in Pikeville, Kentucky and formerly a professor at the Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College. In 2015, Ermold and husband David Moore were three times denied a marriage license by Rowan County, Kentucky Clerk, Kim Davis, who argued the act would violate her religious beliefs. The couple later sued Davis, and campaigned against her appointment as Rowan County Clerk.

Early life and career
Ermold grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania before moving to Morehead, Kentucky with his partner and now husband, David Moore. Ermold attended Morehead State University where he received two masters degrees, one in communications and the other in English. Ermold worked as an Assistant Professor of English and Communications at Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College before becoming an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Pikeville. Ermold also works as the Director of Administrations for Morehead Pride Inc, an organization that aims to bring local LGBTQ members in tandem with vendors and provide access to scholarships for LGBTQ students in the area.

Marriage case
In 2015, Ermold and husband David Moore applied for and were denied a marriage license three times by Rowan County, Kentucky Clerk, Kim Davis, who argued the act would violate her religious beliefs. The couple, in cooperation with another couple, Will Smith and James Yates, later sued Davis for "mental anguish, emotional distress, and humiliation and reputation damages" and campaigned against her appointment as Rowan County Clerk.

Ermold v. Davis
Following their third denial of a marriage license, on July 10, 2015, Ermold and Moore sued Kim Davis for continuing to deny their civil right to marriage after the landmark case of Obergfell v. Hodges had been decided in the Supreme Court. After a long journey following multiple appeals and one petition of writ of certiorari, the case was decided in favor of Ermold and Moore on March 18, 2022. The damage trial began on September 11, 2023, and after the jury decided in favor of Ermold and Moore, the initial payout ordered for damages was $100,000. Following this order for damages, the Court then began discerning attorney fees and expenses, where the Court granted the motion of $246,026.40 in attorneys fees and $14,058.30 in expenses.

Ermold v. Davis, 0:15-cv-00046, (E.D. Ky. Dec 28, 2023) ECF No.165