A judge on Monday ruled against Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) by issuing a restraining order over the extension of his stay-at-home order, which was implemented as part of an effort to blunt the spread of the Chinese coronavirus.
Clay County Circuit Court Judge Michael McHaney handed down the restraining order to temporarily pause lockdown rules scheduled to commence Friday.
Pritzker vowed in a press conference to fight the ruling, telling reporters: “We are certainly going to act in a swift action to have this ruling overturned.”
The development comes after State Rep. Darren Bailey (D) filed a lawsuit alleging that Pritzker exceeded his authority with the order given to him by the state’s Emergency Management Act. On Thursday, Pritzker extended the order until May 30.
“Representative Bailey’s decision to go to the courts is an insult to all Illinoisans who have been lost during this COVID-19 crisis. It’s a danger to millions of people who might get ill because of his recklessness,” added Pritzker. “Disasters don’t evaporate on a 30-day timeframe. Legislators took this into account when they wrote this law. We will fight this lawsuit to the furthest means possible.”
Pritzker said he will roll out additional public health directives to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
“The ruling technically only releases Bailey from the executive order. But it opens the door for anyone else in the state to file a suit,” notes WGN-TV.
As of Monday, Illionois registered a total of 45,883 coronavirus cases and nearly 2,000 deaths.
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