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Title: Kansas Supreme Court Sides With Governor, Preserving Ban On Large Church Services
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Published: Apr 12, 2020
Author: By JIM MCLEAN
Post Date: 2020-04-12 13:14:38 by Gatlin
Keywords: None
Views: 755
Comments: 6
TOPEKA, Kansas — Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly won a ruling from the Kansas Supreme Court Saturday that said she holds sweeping powers to shut down operations in the state, including large church services, in the face of a public health crisis. The high court said that a panel of legislative leaders lacked the power to reverse Kelly’s controversial limits on church and funeral services. She had said the action was needed to respond to the spread of COVID-19. T hat meant that late on the night before Easter, Kelly’s order banning church gatherings of more than 10 congregants remained in force. The ruling forced the justices to weigh in on an issue that tangles together politics, religion and debate about the powers granted to a governor when a deadly pandemic strikes. But the court took pains to say it only looked at what powers had legislators surrendered to the governor to deal with the pandemic after they took a recess in early stages of the disease spreading through Kansas. The ruling made clear the justices would not weigh in on the issue of whether Kelly violated religious freedoms protected by the First Amendment in her order. At issue was whether the Legislative Coordinating Council, or LCC, overstepped by trying to quash the governor’s ban on large religious services. “The LCC purported to revoke one executive order. We are asked to determine whether it acted within its lawful authority,” the court said in an order released about 9 p.m. Saturday. “We hold that it did not.” Yet the legal arguments hashed out in a Zoom video conference call some 12 hours earlier centered mostly on whether a subset of legislative leaders could speak for all lawmakers and overrule emergency actions by the governor. They also explored whether drafting errors in the legislation could be overlooked in an emergency. The back-and-forth between the justices and the lawyers for both sides seemed to reveal at least some consensus: In a rush to leave Topeka and give Kelly powers to respond to a fast-spreading, sometimes deadly illness, the Legislature made critical errors in a resolution. Yes, lawmakers had temporarily granted emergency powers to the governor. But it was far less clear how much authority they handed off to the Legislative Coordinating Council, a committee of legislative leaders controlled by Republicans, to keep Kelly in check. A delegation of power of that magnitude, said Justice Dan Biles, can’t be accomplished with just a legislative resolution. The law defining the role of the LCC would have to be amended, something lawmakers failed to do. “You’re trying to read language into a statute that’s not there,” Biles said to one of the lawyers pleading the Legislature’s case. “While it may be a good idea, all you guys had to do was amend the law and send it to the governor.” On Tuesday, Kelly expanded an existing ban on public gatherings of more than 10 people to include church services and funerals. On Wednesday, the Republican- controlled LCC voted to overturn that executive order. Then on Thursday, Kelly sued and asked the state Supreme Court for a quick ruling. “We agreed to expedite these proceedings due to the nature of the public health emergency all agree is present,” the court said in its ruling. The justices kept their decision narrow. It says LCC lacked the power to revoke Kelly's order. The resolution hastily drafted by lawmakers said their leadership could reverse special action by the governor, but not yet. Instead, the court ruled, the LCC would only gain that power to wipe out an emergency order by Kelly after the state finance council extended the emergency declaration. The original declaration hasn’t expired yet, so it didn’t need an extension. So, by the terms the Legislature set down, the LCC is powerless undo an order by the governor. State Senate President Susan Wagle, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, led the opposition to Kelly’s order. “ We’re restricting individual rights to practice religious liberties,” Wagle said before joining the other four Republicans on the seven-member LCC in voting to revoke Kelly’s directive. Wagle questioned why Kelly’s order applied the 10-person limit to churches and funerals but not to abortion clinics. In a joint statement, the Republican leaders said clergy should voluntarily comply with policies aimed at protecting the health of their congregations. But, they said, “Kansans should not be arrested for practicing their faith.” Kelly denounced the LCC decision, calling it “shockingly irresponsible.” Most churches, she said, acted responsibly by canceling in-person services. Still, health officials had tied three clusters of coronavirus cases to religious gatherings, including one in Wyandotte County. “The last thing I want right now is a legal battle,” Kelly said, “but … Kansas lives are on the line and I took an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution.” On Saturday, an attorney representing the governor’s office argued that Kelly needed broad powers now to fight the spread of COVID-19. “This is a time of unprecedented crisis and danger. Lives are on the line. Every day counts. Every minute counts,” said Clay Britton, Kelly’s chief counsel. Both sides in the fight accused the other of politicizing an issue that demanded more sober thought.
Preserving Ban On Large Church Services
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#1. To: Gatlin (#0)
Federal Court Prohibits Louisville Mayor from Banning Easter Sunday Drive-in Church Service, per Legal Insurrection.com legalinsurrection.com/2020/04/ :)
Si vis pacem, para bellum Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God. "If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." (Will Rogers) "No one ever rescues an old dog. They lay in a cage until they die. PLEASE save one. None of us wants to die cold and alone... --Dennis Olson " People that say money can't buy you happiness, have never paid an adoption fee
His name is not Frank Hahnel, but Eric Nepute, and he's not a doctor. He's a chiropractor who has TERRIBLE reviews on Yelp because he's a snake-oil salesman who spews conspiracy theories. He's really a high school jock who wanted to be a surgeon but apparently wasn't smart enough and "had a revelation" to become a chiropractor and go the Alex Jones route instead.
Great news! Gatlin will NOT be happy. Poor baby.
Government is in the last resort the employment of armed men, of policemen, gendarmes, soldiers, prison guards, and hangmen. Looks like you slandered him. I hope he doesn't sue you. You would have to come out from under your bed.
Looks like you slandered him. You posted a lie about him. Shameful …
#2. To: Stoner (#1)
#3. To: A K A Stone (#2)
Frank Hahnel A real Doctor telling it like it is
#4. To: Stoner (#1)
Federal Court Prohibits Louisville Mayor from Banning Easter Sunday Drive-in Church Service,
The essential feature of government is the enforcement of its decrees by beating, killing, and imprisoning.
Those who are asking for more government interference are asking ultimately for more compulsion and less freedom.
#5. To: Gatlin (#3)
because he's a snake-oil salesman who spews conspiracy theories
#6. To: A K A Stone (#5)
because he's a snake-oil salesman who spews conspiracy theories
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