Some Local Health Officials Rescind Stay-At-Home Orders Over Concern of Legal Trouble
Tuesday, May 19th, 2020 -- 12:07 PM
(AP) -Some local health officials in Wisconsin rescinded their stay-at-home orders Friday after attorneys warned they could be vulnerable to legal challenges after the state Supreme Court wiped out Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide order.But the Wisconsin Counties Association said after Wednesday’s ruling that it was unclear whether local orders mimicking the statewide mandate would stand up in court. By Friday, health officials in Kenosha, Brown, Manitowoc and Outagamie counties had dropped orders, as did the cities of Cudahy and Appleton. Wisconsin’s largest and most liberal counties, Milwaukee and Dane, home to about 1.5 million of the state’s 6 million residents, left their orders in place. Fearing that infections might spike as people begin moving around again, about a dozen counties issued their own stay-at-home orders.
It’s unclear whether the local governments took action after getting a letter from Palm following the ruling advising that they could adopt their own stay-at-home orders and offering a template. Palm’s letter and template were cited in a filing late Friday from plaintiffs in a separate lawsuit before the state Supreme Court over the stay-at-home order.
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