CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- After a downstate judge ruled that a state representative was exempt from Governor J.B. Pritzker's extended stay-at-home order, Mayor Lightfoot said the City of Chicago plans to continue to follow it.
Mayor Lightfoot said the Judge Michael McHaney's ruling against the Governor's stay-at-home order is "troubling, ill-advised, and wrong" and said she stands behind Governor Pritzker's decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I applaud and unequivocally support Governor Pritzker's actions to extend the stay-at-home order to protect all Illinois residents," Lightfoot said. "Nothing about today's ruling will change the city's intention to continue imposing the stay-at-home restrictions. We need this effort to keep all Chicagoans safe and health, and we will stay the course."
Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, filed suit and complained rural Illinois regions should not be put under the same restrictions as the populous Chicago area during the pandemic. Bailey said Democrat Pritzker needs legislative support to extend his shelter-in-place mandate beyond the original 30 days. A few days later, Judge McHaney agreed in his ruling, issuing a temporary restraining order against Pritzker's stay-at-home directive.
Monday's ruling applies only to Rep. Bailey, but presumably could entice other opponents of Pritzker's order to make the same arguments in court.
The Governor blasted Bailey for putting Illinoisans at risk by potentially scuttling social-distancing measures that are based on science. He said everyone is in danger from the novel coronavirus, regardless of where they live.
"At best, no one is better off because of this ruling, and at worst, peoples' health and safety will suffer tremendously," Pritzker said Monday at his daily coronavirus briefing in Chicago.
It wasn't immediately clear what the ramifications will be. Pritzker said the Illinois Attorney General's Office would respond in court on his administration's behalf.
Lightfoot said the judge's opinion is ill-advised and will destroy the collective progress made. She said it will give Illinoisans the impression COVID-19 has been beaten.
"(This ruling) gives Illinoisans the wrong impression that we have beaten COVID-19," she said. "Let me remind everyone that the governor's stay-at-home order has played a crucial role in our data-driven, robust response to COVID-19."
Mayor Lightfoot said the Governor's stay-at-home order is a major reason Chicago is starting to flatten the curve.
"We have come a long way in this crisis, because the vast majority of Chicagoans have heeded this advice and stepped up to do their part; but we still have a long way to go and we encourage people to continue to stay the course and continue to be safe. Stay home and save lives," Lightfoot said.
When asked about those who ignore the stay-at-home order and who have parties, like the one seen on a viral video over the weekend, she said, "I can't prevent people from being foolish, although I wish I had that kind of power. What we can do as a city is educate people about why taking those kind of risks are unnecessary and foolish, talk about personal responsibility and where we see it, take the sights of actions to make sure we shut it down," Lightfoot said.
The Mayor said only through cooperation and collaboration can we contain and limit the effects of the coronavirus. She said Chicago's stay-at-home order stands.
