New York’s Covid-19 rules mandating that infected or exposed individuals isolate is a violation of state law, a state Supreme Court judge ruled this month.
In February, the state enacted Isolation and Quarantine Procedures. Under Rule 2.13, individuals are subject to state regulations and orders issued by the public health authority. The regulations state that “appropriate” isolation locations are determined by the authority, such as at home, or in residential or temporary housing. The law reads....
“Whenever appropriate to control the spread of a highly contagious communicable disease, the State Commissioner of Health may issue and/or may direct the local health authority to issue isolation and/or quarantine orders, consistent with due process of law, to all such persons as the State Commissioner of Health shall determine appropriate.”
Three Republican state legislators filed a lawsuit against state leaders, including Governor Kathy Hochul, for the excessive power authorized to the state government.
“It’s unconstitutional in our eyes, and anything like that should go through the legislature,” Assemblyman Chris Tague said. “It should have an opportunity to be debated. To be able to have facts brought forth by health professionals, and leaders within our communities before we just decide to put something into law.”
Acting Justice of the Supreme Court of Cattaraugus County Ronald D. Ploetz sided with the plaintiffs on July 8, asserting that the illegal mandate gives “lip service” to constitutional due process.
The judge also said that no scientific data was provided by respondents as to why the rule was necessary, only that the procedure was enacted to be a quick approach to combat the pandemic.
“Involuntary detention is a severe deprivation of individual liberty, far more egregious than other health safety measures,” the ruling reads.
Now the rule has been discarded and is null “until the New York State Legislation acts otherwise,” the judge noted.
This success for individual liberty proves why power at the state level is far more balanced than the federal government. It allows unconstitutional orders to be challenged and it allows a fair way of fighting back, as these state legislators did.
Convention of States is adamant on restoring power to the states and taking authority away from the federal government, which has abused its functions to excessively control the lives of all Americans.
Using Article V of the Constitution, authority can be shifted back to the state level by implementing restrictions on the feds such as term limits and budget requirements. This way, Americans can live more freely without Uncle Sam overreaching and overspending its intended bounds.
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