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Michigan AG will not enforce governor’s executive orders after court ruling on emergency powers

Michigan Supreme Court ruling denies governor coronavirus emergency powers

FILE - In this March 5, 2020, file photo, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel addresses the media during a news conference in Lansing, Mich. Jacob Wohl, 22, and Jack Burkman, 54, two notorious conservative operatives were charged Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020 with felonies in connection with false robocalls that aimed to dissuade residents in Detroit and other U.S. cities from voting by mail, Michigan's attorney general announced. (AP Photo/David Eggert, File) (David Eggert, Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

DETROIT – Ryan Jarvi, a spokesman for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office issued a statement on her behalf Sunday. The statement comes after the Michigan Supreme Court’s ruling announced Friday that stripped Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of her coronavirus emergency powers.

The statement read, “In light of the Supreme Court’s decision on Friday, the Attorney General will no longer enforce the Governor’s Executive Orders through criminal prosecution. However, her decision is not binding on other law enforcement agencies or state departments with independent enforcement authority. It’s her fervent hope that people continue to abide by the measures that Governor Whitmer put in place - like wearing face masks, adhering to social distancing requirements and staying home when sick - since they’ve proven effective at saving lives. If it weren’t for the Governor’s actions, countless more of our friends, family and neighbors would have been lost to COVID-19. We can respect both the court’s decision and the advice of medical experts by continuing with these important measures voluntarily.”

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Press Secretary Tiffany Brown also issued a statement Sunday on behalf of the governor’s office in response to the court’s decision.

The statement read, “When it comes to fighting COVID-19, we are all in this together. The governor is ready to work across the aisle with Republicans in the legislature where we can find common ground, but she won’t let partisan politics get in the way of doing what’s necessary to keep people safe and save lives. The Supreme Court’s ruling raises several legal questions that we are still reviewing. While we are moving swiftly, this transition will take time. As the governor said last week, many of the responsive measures she has put in place to control the spread of the virus will continue under alternative sources of authority that were not at issue in the court’s ruling. We will have more to say on this in the coming days. Make no mistake, Governor Whitmer will continue using every tool at her disposal to keep Michigan families, frontline workers, and small businesses safe from this deadly virus.”

READ: Michigan Supreme Court ruling against Gov. Whitmer’s virus order: What happens next?

READ MORE: Gov. Whitmer reacts to Michigan Supreme Court striking down virus orders


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