FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO): An Allen County judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a Fort Wayne catering company that said pandemic-related capacity restrictions went too far.
Ceruti’s Catering sued the Allen County Health Department and Governor Eric Holcomb back in March, saying the orders were an overreach that caused them to lose not only workers but also more than 80 events between last March and April alone.
WISH-TV reporter Brady Gibson says the judge ruled that both Holcomb and the Health Department acted within their powers, saying that the Governor’s emergency declaration at the time, plus the fact that the General Assembly took no steps to override it, gave officials the power to set such restrictions.
NEW: Judge in Allen County dismisses catering company lawsuit over COVID restrictions, ruling Gov. Holcomb and Allen County Health Dept. acted within their powers.@WISH_TV @93wibc pic.twitter.com/SGtRKPPWgL
— Brady Gibson (@bradygibson) September 1, 2021
The ruling went on to say that all businesses and organizations, not just Ceruti’s, were impacted by the pandemic and that the Health Department’s actions bore a “substantial relation” to state objectives that were in the interest of public health.
1 comment
Why would a Judge rule that the State overstepped their authority? What incentive do they have to limit their own power?
If you read the Indiana Code for Emergency authorization it is written clearly what the Governor has authority to do. And limiting people’s Rights (over riding the constitution) are not in it. The Health Department can definitely not over ride people’s Rights….But the ruling “Health Department’s actions bore a “substantial relation” to state objectives”…really says it all…made my case for me