Pennsylvania judge strikes down ‘unconstitutional’ coronavirus restrictions

Many restrictions already lifted, but inconsistency in implementation highlighted by judge

A federal judge has struck down Pennsylvania’s coronavirus pandemic restrictions calling them unconstitutional.

Governor Tom Wolf had implemented limits on the size of gatherings and ordered people to stay home and for “non-life-sustaining” businesses to close in an attempt to stem the spread of Covid-19 infections.

However, on Monday US District Judge William Stickman IV sided with plaintiffs that included hair salons, drive-in movie theatres, a farmer’s market vendor, a horse trainer, and several Republican officeholders who sued as individuals.

Judge Stickman, an appointee of president Donald Trump, ruled that the Wolf administration’s pandemic policies are overreaching, arbitrary and violated citizens’ constitutional rights.

The judge wrote that the governor’s decisions “were undertaken with the good intention of addressing a public health emergency”, but “even in an emergency, the authority of government is not unfettered”.

Many of the restrictions imposed by the governor have been lifted since the lawsuit was filed in May — including the stay-at-home order.

Businesses have also reopened, though capacity limits still apply and there are restrictions on alcohol sales in bars and restaurants.

Indoor events are limited to 25 people and outdoor events to 250 — it was argued in the case that this violates the First Amendment.

Judge Stickman noted that limits on crowd size did no include exceptions for protests, though they had been allowed to proceed. Governor Wolf even participated in a protest that exceeded the limits imposed on gatherings.

While verbal exceptions had been made for the protests, these were not reflected in the language of the governor’s order restricting gatherings.

The judge also pointed out that venue size had not been considered regarding indoor events and some commercial gatherings had been permitted based on percentage occupancy of a location.

In August, president Trump praised his supporters in the state as “incredible people” for defying the shutdown orders and social distancing guidelines at a campaign rally near Scranton.

A spokesperson for the governor said that they are reviewing the judge’s decision.

There have been 145,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the state, and more than 7,800 officially recorded deaths.

With reporting from the Associated Press