Politics still at play in school mask mandate fight

Robert J. Miller
Thomas Rademaker

                                                                              
                                                   

A Democratic appellate judge in Brooklyn today overruled  a decision by a Nassau Republican Supreme court judge.

What a surprise. 

Justice Robert Miller of the state's Appellate division in Brooklyn issued a stay against Nassau Justice Thomas Rademaker's ruling yesterday that the indoor mask mandate issued by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul was illegally enacted and cannot be enforced.

Now the case --  brought by a group of Nassau parents -- will go to a full appellate panel to decide. But for the time being, the mask mandate stays in place.

Hochul, the former lieutenant governor who got her job when Democrat Andrew Cuomo resigned in August, was pleased with Miller's decision.

"As governor, my top priority is protecting the people of this state," Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. "These measures are critical tools to prevent the spread of COVID-19, make schools and businesses safe, and save lives.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a Republican who has been fighting Hochul's mandate, said the governor should "stand down and stop disrespecting the rights of students and parents. Mask decisions should be made by families and school boards who have their finger on the pulse of their communities. Not Albany politicians."

Rademaker had ruled that Hochul's mask mandate was illegal because she did not get state legislative approval. Instead, she bypassed the legislature and ordered the state health commissioner, her appointee, to issue the mandate.

Hochul has insisted that state law is on her side. But precedent is on the parents side: Before Cuomo issued emergency orders to combat the coronavirus, the state legislature authorized him to take whatever steps he deemed necessary.

Instead of fighting this in court, why doesn't Hochul simply get approval from Albany to issue the mandate? Democrats are in control of both the state Senate and state Assembly. A vote would end the debate over whether Hochul enacted the mandate legally. 

Even Hochul said today that she would consider working with the state legislature to reimpose the mask mandate depending on how the case goes.

It's about time.

But whether masking school children effectively prevents infection has yet to be argued in court.

 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Finally, Singh is in prison

Image
                                                                                   Eight years after Harendra Singh pleaded guilty to bribing Nassau County and Oyster Bay Town officials in exchange for $20 million in personal loan guarantees, the former Oyster Bay restaurateur has been incarcerated. Singh reported to federal prison in Otisville, NY on Friday. He originally was supposed to begin serving his four-year sentence last January but received several unexplained extensions. Otisville, according to the Chicago Tribune,  has tennis courts, horseshoes, cardio equipment  "and it sounds like the closest thing the federal prison system has to sleepaway camp." Singh pleaded guilty to bribing town officials and Republican County Executive Edward Mangano from 2010 throug...
Read more

Two new district judges and a Surrogate Court switch

Image
Two new District Court judges are expected to be appointed by the Nassau legislature this month while  a new Nassau Surrogate will take office next January. All are considered competent lawyers, but of course politics play a part in the moves. James Saladino, a Suffolk District Court judge, has been recommended by Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman to be appointed a judge in Nassau's 4th District Court, which covers Oyster Bay and Glen Cove. James Saladino is the brother of Republican Oyster Bay Supervisor Joe Saladino and is the son of a late Republican Supreme Court Justice Joseph J. Saladino. James Saladino, who served in various Suffolk legal position, must have moved into Nassau. Also recommended for appointment is Maria Boultadakis to Nassau's 2nd District Court in Hempstead. A law clerk for three successive Republican Supreme Court justices,  Boudtadakis is the daughter of Nick Boudtakakis, owner of the Sands Castle in Franklin Square. The restaurant and caterin...
Read more

Nassau CSEA contract deal -- talk of the county for two days -- finally announced (UPDATED)

Image
Talk around Nassau County for the past two days has been that Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman had struck a new labor agreement, signed Monday, with the county's largest union, the Nassau Civil Service Employees Association. The CSEA, which include most non-law enforcement county employees, has been working without a contract since the end of 2017. As of June, there were 3,359 fulltime CSEA members. An announcement went out late today but it didn't say much: A spokesman for Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman did not respond to an email today asking when the CSEA deal would be announced. Everyone is looking at the CSEA because exempt employees -- county workers who are hired and fired at will -- traditionally are given the same benefits as the union members. But the exempts are not happy with some of the rumors about the agreement: one is that the CSEA will take a lesser health insurance plan in return for an upfront payment, perhaps of $1,500, for each member....
Read more