Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker is outraged at the judge’s ruling that found that his emergency powers had lapsed at the beginning of April as noted in this report from WIFR:
CHICAGO, Ill. (WBBM) — Governor J.B. Pritzker has filed an appeal of a downstate judge’s ruling exempting a Republican state lawmaker​ from the governor’s extended stay-at-home order.
State Rep. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) claimed in a lawsuit filed last week that Pritzker has exceeded his authority and is violating the civil rights of the state’s residents by extending the stay-at-home order for an additional 30 days, through May 30.
Clay County Circuit Court Judge Michael McHaney on Monday granted representative Bailey a temporary restraining order, barring the governor from enforcing the stay-at-home order on the lawmaker, meaning Bailey won’t have to comply with the extension once it begins on Friday.
The judge said the governor’s extension, “shredded the constitution.†Representative Bailey agrees, calling the extension an overreach of Pritzker’s power as governor. While Bailey is the only person exempted from the stay-at-home order, the judge’s ruling opens the door for others in Illinois to join his lawsuit, or file their own.
Pritzker isn’t wasting any time appealing the ruling. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed a notice of appeal with the Illinois Appellate Court on Monday night, asking the court to reverse McHaney’s ruling, and dissolve the temporary restraining order.
The governor has said Bailey’s lawsuit puts people in Illinois at risk, and he has vowed to “fight this legal battle to the furthest extent possible.â€
and from Crain’s Chicago Business:
A judge from far southern Illinois on Monday threw a legal bombshell into Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s continuing response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ruling the governor exceeded his authority in issuing a statewide stay-at-home order.
Pritzker immediately blasted the judge’s ruling, sought in a case brought by state Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, saying it violates “decades of precedent†and “puts people in danger.â€
IMO Gov. Pritzker is directing his ire in the wrong direction. He should be blaming Illinois do-nothing, corrupt, incompetent legislature. All of us including Gov. Pritzker must adhere to the law, emergency or not. That the legislature has not amended the law to extend the governor’s emergency powers is neither the plaintiff’s nor the judge’s fault.
“Decades of precedent”: From what I’ve read, there is no legal precedent, its just that Pritzker and other governors have extended emergencies in situations like flooding, thirty-days at a time. “Everybody does it” is not a defense to jaywalking either.
Also overlooks the pragmatic issue that in order for someone to challenge a governor’s emergency order, they have to be injured by it. Flooding and tornadoes usually only results in emergency relief from the state to aid the community. If someone is being blocked from coming or going to their home, that’s being handled by the local police on their own.
Not saying there isn’t any precedent, I would expect the Attorney General’s Office to do a good job briefing them to the Appellate Court, but most of what is filtering through the press is not a legal argument (the policy is good, its not demanding, the plaintiff is ideologically motivated, who is this judge?)
BTW/ The Judge is a Democrat.
To the best of my knowledge the entire U. S. went over to a system of statutory control of emergency powers more than a century ago. As I said, Pritzker’s problem is with the statute.
Listening to his regular afternoon briefing right now. He’s making an ad hominem argument against the ruling, not a legal one. My understanding is that Pritzker is a lawyer. I don’t know if he’s ever practiced. Just because you’re a lawyer does not mean you’re a good lawyer.
Pettifogging rules passed by bigoted small-minded legislators and signed by idiot governors oh so long ago must be brushed aside in times of emergency. And by golly pension deficits forced upon us by stupid voters are an emergency!