Voters Jeff Trajicz, right, and Lori Walter kiss while wearing masks as they wait in line to vote during the presidential primary held under an epidemic outside a polling station in Milwaukee, Wis. (April 7, 2020)
Wisconsin’s Supreme Court on Wednesday (March 31) overturned a statewide muzzle injunction issued by Gov. Tony Evers. The state Supreme Court ruled that the Democrat exceeded his authority by unilaterally extending the muzzling injunction for months through multiple emergency orders.
The conservative-dominated state Supreme Court overturned the “home safety order” by four to three, ruling that the state health secretary did not have the authority to issue such orders.
State Justice Brian Hagedorn, writing for the majority opinion, said, “The issue in this case is not whether the governor acted wisely, but whether he acted lawfully. Our conclusion is that he did not.”
FILE PHOTO:A screenshot of video from the Wisconsin Department of Health shows Governor Evers speaking while wearing a mask. (July 30, 2020)
The ruling comes after Republicans in the state Assembly voted to repeal the mask mandate during February, but Evers quickly reissued the order. Under state law, the governor can issue a 60-day health emergency order, and after that, the state legislature must approve an extension.
Evers argued that he could issue a new emergency order because the threat of a Communist virus pandemic had changed.
The court last May overturned the governor’s attempt to limit the capacity of bars, restaurants and other indoor establishments.
The ruling by the Wisconsin Supreme Court comes on the same day that a White House adviser on the Communist Chinese virus epidemic called on all governors to maintain or reinstate mask mandates in their states, in tandem with the continued rise in new cases in the United States.
Earlier this month, five states allowed their state’s mask mandates to expire, joining 11 other states that have never enforced them.
At a White House press briefing, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky said the latest data show that the seven-day average number of new U.S. crown cases rose 12 percent last week.
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