Prairie State Wire

There could be legal issues for Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker after the COVID-19 pandemic ends, according to a memo written by David J. Robinson, the chief deputy director of the Illinois Appellate Prosecutor’s Office.

In the memorandum, dated April 21, and addressed to the director of the office, Patrick J. Delfino, Robinson looks at the executive orders that the governor has issued during the pandemic, and comes to the conclusion that there may be potential civil liability, and discusses what the state’s attorneys might see happen in criminal and civil courts as a result of Pritzker’s executive orders.  

In the memo, Robinson wrote that the order and its extension have indeed infringed on citizens’ rights, although that infringement may be justified. The civil rights in question include, but are not limited to due process, freedom of religion and freedom of assembly.

“My research leaves me less than confident that a reviewing court will hold that the governor has the authority close businesses, bar attendance at church services and assemblies in excess of 10 citizens [particularly if they are assembling to redress grievances]," Robinson said. "From a strict enforcement standpoint, although well-intentioned on an emergency basis, the [executive order] is very broad and does not appear to meet strict scrutiny, this is not to mention the [executive order] appears to be beyond the framework of the specific act it cites as support.”

Robinson also noted that Article V did not give Pritzker the power to suspend Illinois residents’ constitutional rights. He also does not have the power to organize the militia to suppress insurrection or enforce laws, which could be why Pritzker has left enforcement of the stay-at-home order to the local law enforcement. Not only that, but the act seems to give Pritzker these emergency powers for no longer than a 30-day span.