A Washington state county sheriff said the governor's stay-at-home order is unconstitutional and he won't enforce it, The Seattle Times reports.
Snohomish County Sheriff Adam Fortney posted a long message to his Facebook page Tuesday night.
Fortney said he would "put your constitutional rights above politics or popular opinion." He said the stay-at-home order violates Washingtonians' First Amendment rights to religious exercise and peaceable assembly.
Stay-at-home mandates are geared toward curbing the spread of the coronavirus by preventing large crowds from gathering.
He said he was worried about the economy and residents' ability to make a living.
"I believe that preventing business owners to operate their businesses and provide for their families intrudes on our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," he wrote.
The sheriff's post comes after Gov. Jay Inslee shared how to reopen the state Tuesday night.
After watching Inslee's address, the sheriff wrote that he "wondered if [Inslee] even had a plan."
Fortney said he'd wanted to post his missive two weeks ago but "decided to wait out of respect for the Governor and my own misguided hope that each day he did a press conference he would say something with some specificity on getting Washington back to work. After what I witnessed tonight I can no longer stay silent as I'm not even sure he knows what he is doing or knows what struggles Washingtonian's (sic) face right now."
In Snohomish County, 2,152 people have been confirmed to have COVID-19 and 99 have died, according to the state Department of Health.
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