We continue with Judge Wilson’s (ret.) review of civil rights and the Covid crisis
INFRINGEMENT OF THE RIGHT TO TRAVEL
The right to travel between states has been long enjoyed by citizens of the United States, even though the “textual support” for this right is a bit unclear. Still, as stated in the 1999 US Supreme Court case, Saenz v. Rose, “we need not identify the source of [the right to travel] in the text of the Constitution. The right of ‘free ingress and regress to and from’ neighboring states which was expressly mentioned in the text of the Article of Confederation, may simply have been ‘conceived from the beginning to be a necessary concomitant of the stronger Union the Constitution created.’ ”
Yet, the state of Rhode Island began to hunt down New Yorkers traveling to their state, going so far as to use the National Guard to track these travelers to the places they were staying. A checkpoint was established on I-95, and cars with New York license plates were specifically targeted. After less than a week of these excessive tactics, Rhode Island, under threat of a lawsuit from New York State, broadened their approach to include “any person coming to Rhode Island from another state for a non-work-related purpose” who “must immediately self-quarantine for 14 days.”
Florida has set up similar checkpoints on its highways, targeting vehicles with New York plates coming from the North, and vehicles with Louisiana plates coming from the West. To date, neither New York nor Louisiana has made any statement regarding these obviously illegal actions by Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, who has also instructed his state troopers to threaten those who do not self-quarantine with 60 days in jail.
INFRINGEMENT ON THE RIGHT TO WORSHIP
As is stated in the First Amendment to the US Constitution, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” There are fewer statements that are more direct and clear than this statement of the law of our land.
Yet, in Kentucky, the governor issued an order stopping all in-person gatherings, including festivals, government meetings and church services. California also ordered the closure of their churches, deeming them to be an “unessential service.” The Mayor of New York threatened to permanently close churches and synagogues that did not comply with his orders.
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These are but a few examples of the overreach and unconstitutional power grabs going on throughout the country. Yes, the state does have the power to act in the interests of the health and safety of its citizens. But it does not have the power to exact criminal penalties on those who do not follow “stay at home” orders. All the state can legally do is quarantine those who will not stay at home. However, establishing quarantine centers costs more money than threatening citizens with criminal penalties, and enforcing these illegal laws on the few who will not cooperate.
And of course, it never hurts to take advantage of a crisis, and expand your power – does it?
This article was provided exclusively to the New York Analysis of Policy and Government by Judge John H. Wilson (ret.)
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