The 1851 Center for Constitutional Law — a nonprofit and nonpartisan firm based in Columbus — said that Dr. Acton’s updated April 30 stay at home order “opens, or provides a pathway to opening, many Ohio industries, but leaves gyms closed indefinitely without regard to whether gyms are capable of operating safely.”
The complaint says Dr. Acton’s order is “impermissibly vague” and that the use of the health department’s powers to “criminalize gyms that could otherwise comply with each of the safety regulations articulated in the April 30, 2020 Order violates operators’ right to equal protection.”
“The Ohio Constitution requires greater scrutiny of vague and discriminatory enactments that trample Ohioans’ property rights. Ohio gyms are capable of operating safely, and have the right to operate on equal terms with other Ohio businesses. Once gyms have opened, we are committed to ensuring that these arbitrary policies never recur,” said 1851 Center Executive Director Maurice Thompson in a release.
And a judge in the court of common pleas in Lake County, Ohio agrees with the plaintiffs.
Wednesday morning, Judge Eugene Lucci enjoined Gov. DeWine and Dr. Acton from “imposing or enforcing penalties solely for non-compliance with the director’s order” against gymnasiums, health clubs, fitness centers, gyms, and workout facilities, says the 1851 Center in a release.
The ruling says the Stay at Home, amended Stay at Home and Stay Safe Ohio orders “on their face and as applied” violate Article I, sections 1, 2, 16, 19 and 20, and Article II, Section I of the Ohio Constitution.
Judge Lucci, who is a Facebook fan of Breitbart, Diamond and Silk, and every mobster movie ever made, also ruled that “private property rights are fundamental rights in Ohio, and that the Ohio Department of Health has both violated those rights and exceeded its own authority in ‘criminalizing lawful businesses, and imposing strict liability for violations, including severe criminal, civil, and equitable penalties’: ‘The director has no statutory authority to close all businesses, including the plaintiffs’ gyms . . . She has acted in an impermissibly arbitrary, unreasonable, and oppressive manner without any procedural safeguards,’ ” according to the center.
“Constitutions are written to prevent governments from arbitrarily interfering in citizens’ lives and businesses. On that front, the call to action is clear: the Governor and Health Director may no longer impose their own closures and regulations and write their own criminal penalties to enforce those regulations and closures,” said the 1851 Center’s Thompson.
You can read the full ruling here.
While Gov. DeWine ordered that gyms may reopen on May 26 following these protocols, Judge Lucci’s ruling means that no one can enforce the closure right now.
In a comment to Cleveland.com, a DeWine spokesperson said, “The ruling affirms that facilities must follow Ohio Department of Health safety protocols to keep patrons and all Ohioans safe and healthy. These facilities were due to open Tuesday anyways. However, our office disagrees with the ruling’s analysis of law.”
DeWine is consulting with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Cleveland.com reported.
This article appears in May 20-26, 2020.
I agree with the judge.
Although Governor DeWine and Director Acton can argue that they were trying to save lives by massively infringing on the constitutional rights of almost all Ohioans, what they did is act like compassionate dictators.
What they did also violated the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.
The due process clause states, “No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, and property without due process of law.”
However, the State of Ohio deprived Ohioans of their freedom to work and to conduct business without due process, and the tremendous losses they suffered cannot be remedied.
The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits states from denying any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law. In other words, the laws of a state must treat an individual in the same manner as other people in similar conditions and circumstances.
However, Governor DeWine and Director Acton discriminated against gym owners in an arbitrary and capricious manner while giving better treatment to businesses they favored more.
Although Governor DeWine and Director Acton said that they wanted to save lives, they imposed tremendous hardships and loss of freedom of 100 percent of Ohioans to try to protect the lives of around 2 percent of Ohioans.
The most important thing I learned from Governor DeWine and Director Acton’s actions during this pandemic is “America, the Land of the Free” is just a rhetorical slogan, and not actually true.
“Judge Lucci, who is a Facebook fan of Breitbart, Diamond and Silk,…”
No need to be so wordy, just say he’s a moron
Interestingly, the Capitol Insider reported that last year when DeWine made his first budget… he submitted a proposal to limit Acton’s powers in an emergency. Huh? Oh yeah, and to give himself more power in a health emergency over moving state funds around. See that? It’s not about saving lives. It’s about the moolah.
These proposals were not put into law (not sure why – maybe the House/Senate felt it was an overreach of the Executive branch of our state govt?) but I just find it extremely ironic considering what is going on now….
Here’s the except from the Capital Insider article:
Capitol Insider: Last year, DeWine wanted Householder to revamp Ohio health director’s powers
“In early 2019, the new governor proposed several changes in Ohio law about health emergencies when he rolled out his first state budget.
The House, led by first-year Speaker Householder, removed them all.
DeWine proposed that emergency health orders expire either in 30 days or “when the General Assembly suspends the operation of the executive order by adopting a concurrent resolution.”
DeWine proposed that if the legislature acted, the governor could not renew the order, even if the emergency still existed.
Other parts of DeWine’s 2019 proposal would have given the governor broad powers during an emergency, allowing him to:
1. Use any available resources of state government or political subdivisions as necessary.
2. Order the director of the Office of Budget and Management to transfer cash from any fund not otherwise restricted to assist in emergency efforts.
3. Limit, alter, or suspend (except as provided under federal law) any provisions of a collective-bargaining agreement or transfer state-agency personnel or functions for the purpose of facilitating emergency services.”