LIHU‘E — Earlier this month, a dozen Kaua‘i residents and one from Hawai‘i Island filed a civil lawsuit against Gov. David Ige, alleging his orders to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 violate state and federal law.
The complaint alleges the emergency orders, including a two-week self-quarantine for travelers and social-distancing requirements, violate citizens’ “fundamental right to movement and fundamental right to liberty, and fundamental right to due process,” and requests the courts declare these rules unconstitutional and void.
“There’s a global pandemic going on, and it’s the government’s first priority to keep citizens safe, healthy and alive,” said Andrea Freeman, a professor at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa’s William S. Richardson School of Law. “That’s the motivation for these orders.”
In May, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the statewide safer-at-home order, voting 4-3 in a ruling that rejected extending a state health official’s stay-at-home order. The ruling gave power to local municipalities to manage their own responses.
Freeman pointed to case law that supports the quarantine and travel restrictions. She also noted that, in Florida, where orders have been lifted, cases of coronavirus have spiked. On Thursday, Florida reported 3,207 new cases, a single-day high for the state.
Similar lawsuits in California, Illinois and Michigan have failed.
“(The lawsuit is) not entirely frivolous, but it is misguided because it tries to push back on orders that are trying to protect the public,” Freeman said. “It’s not community-minded.”
The O‘ahu-based Attorneys for Freedom Law Firm filed the suit on behalf of the residents and For Our Rights, a named, unincorporated association.
The plaintiffs claim the emergency orders have induced depression, anxiety and emotional distress among substantial losses of income. Plaintiffs also claim the travel quarantines have deprived them of visits from family or friends, which has exasperated these feelings of despair in some instances.
Freeman pointed to current events, rather than Ige, for these claims. “Stress and anxiety are not because of the government orders, it’s because of the pandemic,” she said.
The claim was filed with a motion for a temporary restraining order which requests prohibiting the state from enforcing Ige’s May 18 order or to at least stop enforcing the 14-day, state-mandated, self-quarantine for out-of-state travelers. Since lawsuits can take time, the TRO can provide immediate relief, Freeman said.
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Sabrina Bodon, public safety and government reporter, can be reached at 245-0441 or sbodon@thegardenisland.com.
