Judge Denies Wolf Stay Request

HARRISBURG – A U.S. District Judge from western Pennsylvania has denied a stay order request from the Wolf administration after the judge earlier this month ruled state restrictions to stem the coronavirus as unconstitutional.

The initial ruling came Sept. 14 from Judge William Stickman IV. He said a pandemic “cannot be permitted to undermine our system of constitutional liberties or the system of checks and balances protecting those liberties.”

The Wolf administration later filed for a stay but on Tuesday Stickman denied the request, writing, “The public interest would be ill served if the court would grant the stay allowing the unconstitutional measures to remain in place.”

The Wolf administration meanwhile has appealed the court’s original turndown to the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals. In Philadelphia on Tuesday, Wolf said the Stickman ruling does lift the state limits of 25 people for indoor events and 250 for outside activities but said in the meantime the state is going to “present schools and others with guidance to say ok, in our best estimation from the health point of view, you got to be careful if you get together. And if you get together in bigger and bigger numbers, you’re leaving yourself open to bigger and bigger likelihood that you’re going to catch the disease.”

Among the plaintiffs in the case were several western Pennsylvania counties, a number of businesses, and individuals, including U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly and state Reps. Daryl Metcalfe, Marci Mustello and Tim Bonner.