Latest info on Utah Civil Rights Complaint
Our Title 42 lawsuit against Gov. Herbert, Gov. Cox, Richard Saunders (director of the Utah Department of Health), Senator Stuart Adams, President of the Utah State Senate, and Speaker Brad Wilson, Speaker of the Utah House, is progressing. We have answered a couple of motions for dismissal and amended our 50 causes of action, originally filed at the end of December 2020, down to 20 'more definitive' causes of action.
As we stated during our 2020 Gubernatorial Campaign, we were committed to filing a Civil Rights Complaint (US Title 42 Section 1983) against Gov. Herbert & Cox, et al, regarding their lbantant violations of the US and Utah State Constitutions. It was written (containing 50 separate ‘causes of action’) and was reviewed by a couple of attorneys (one of whom is former Utah Atty. Gen. John Swallow). We filed this Complaint with Fourth District Court, in Utah County, on December 30, 2020., and is Civil Case #200401847.
So far, we are aware of three or four other lawsuits and legal action taking different tacks toward the same goal. One is an Anti-Mask suit, filed by a couple of groups in the State of Utah (both Northern Utah and affiliates in the St. George area). This suit is lead by Morgan Philpot, as the attorney for the groups. We hear the suit went into court and was dismissed (for an unknown reason) and is on the path to an appealate court. As we learn anything, we will also pass along these updates as well.
One recent such update from Minnesota is of interest, as was the Pennsylvania Judge’s decision of Sept. 14, 2020 (Burke v Wolf, case 2:20-cv-677). Both declared their respective Governor’s responses “unconstitutional,” just as we have been saying about Utah’s Governor Herbert for the past eight months of 2020. Even Gov. Newsome, of California, has been called to halt his over-reach by a court in California - he is also facing a grassroots recall petition which almost has enough signatures as of this date (Fec. 18, 2020). Gov. Newsome's recall is something Utah nor Idaho can do, since there is no recall by petition in Utah or Idaho's Constitution. We await further news on that front as well.
In Minnesota, the attorney for the Free Minnesota Small Business Coalition, Erick Kaardal, said “The governor has acted like a drunk monarch because he has not been following any of the rules. … Rather than working with the legislature, the agencies and the judges, he’s just doing his own thing. He issued 75 executive orders,” (Gov. Herbert matched that feat in Utah during 2020!) … “he’s issuing them like a tissue. It’s just ridiculous. We can’t even keep up with him. He refuses to work with anyone else, it’s a lack of leadership.”
The small businesses are also joined by several state lawmakers, in Minnesota. They are challenging Minnesota Gov. Walz’s executive orders during the pandemic claiming that Walz has been out of control by taking measures they claim unlawfully restrict civil liberties and amount to improper legislative action. Remind you of any current or immediate past governor of the State of Utah? Herbert issued 75 Executive Orders before leaving office at the end of 2020, and that doesn't count the State Health Orders the UDOH issued!.
More coming later, but this is "Nuff for Now."
(updated as of March 1, 2021)