Another federal judge sides with governor on bar closing order as owners appeal

LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — Louisiana bar owners are appealing a federal judge’s ruling upholding Gov. John Bel Edwards’ order closing bars to on-site consumption, as another federal judge sided with the governor Friday in denying efforts to block the mandate.

U.S. District Court Judge Robert Summerhays of the Western District of Louisiana in Lafayette ruled Friday that bar owners did not meet the standard to block the governor’s order, the third judge considering the issue to rule that way.

“The court is sympathetic to the harm suffered by these plaintiffs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the judge’s 25-page order states. “This pandemic has imposed tremendous, often unprecedented burdens on the country’s healthcare system, schools, economy, and daily life.” 

Summerhays laid out how the arguments by bar owners and the testimony heard Monday did not sufficiently meet the standard required to block Edwards’ order, and said the court was not the proper forum to fight his decision.

“Those policy decisions must be judged in the political arena. In our system, the ultimate checks against the policy choices of our political leaders are elections,” Summerhays ruled. 

U.S. District Court Judge Martin Feldman of the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans also sided with Edwards in a ruling Monday, as Edwards testified in an identical lawsuit challenging his order in federal court in Lafayette.

Bar owners from Acadiana and south Louisiana filed the challenges in identical federal cases, seeking an end to the closures prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The appeal in the New Orleans case heads to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

For the remainder of this story, visit our media partners at The Daily Advertiser.