Several charged across state with violating Gov. Walz’s order to stay home amid coronavirus outbreak

September 12, 2020 in News by RBN Staff

source: www.startribune.com
By 

Coronavirus: The ACLU of Minnesota questioned police tactics in pursuing some cases.

When he tried to investigate whether the bar was defying Gov. Tim Walz’s March 16 executive order requiring bars and restaurants to cease dine-in service, he found the door locked and four men inside playing cards and drinking.

Bar owner David M. Schuster of Winnebago was charged March 26 in Faribault County District Court with a rare offense — violating an emergency powers order or rule.

Schuster, 57, became the first Minnesotan charged with violating one of Walz’s several executive orders aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19, which has infected 935 Minnesotans and killed 29.

Eight others have since been charged as of Friday afternoon with the same offense — a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000.

Some advocates are concerned police are not issuing a warning first, or are unnecessarily tacking on the charge as a secondary offense.

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