Kentucky federal appeals court upholds COVID-19 order to close religious and private schools

(Worthy News) – A federal appeals court in Kentucky has upheld a state COVID-19 order issued by Gov. Andy Beshear to close religious and private schools in seeking to contain the spread of the virus, the Washington Examiner reports. In making its ruling, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a restraining order issued previously by the District Court against the closing of religious schools. The lawsuit was originally filed by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and the Danville Christian Academy, who argued that the closure of religious schools is unconstitutional.

In a statement about the decision, Democratic governor Beshear said: “While we all want to get our kids back to in-person instruction, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recognized that doing so now would endanger the health and lives of Kentucky children, educators and families.”

“Almost every county is in the red zone, we have had nearly 10,000 students and staff in quarantine over the past two weeks, our hospitals are on the verge of being overwhelmed and we have lost nearly 1,900 fellow Kentuckians, including health care workers, a teacher and a 15-year-old student,” Beshear said. “To help save more lives and defeat this virus, we need everyone to do their part.”

According to the plaintiffs, however, the order to close religious schools is a violation of the “nature of religious education which is insinuated with worship, prayer, and mentoring.” Agreeing that the governor “has every right to impose some restrictions” on all schools in “times of crisis,” the plaintiffs went on to argue that he has “gone too far” in prohibiting in-person classes, the Washington Examiner reports.

The court of appeals said the District Court should not have issued a restraining order because the lawsuit was unlikely to succeed and private schools can offer on-line instruction, the Washington Examiner reports. In response to the latest decision, AG Cameron said in a statement that the plaintiffs are “hard at work to take this matter to the U.S. Supreme Court.”

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