Churchgoers Sue Kentucky Gov. Comparing Restrictions to Japanese Internment

Three churchgoers who sued Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear for violating their religious freedoms with coronavirus-related restrictions compared their plight with the 1944 Supreme Court case of Fred Korematsu — a Japanese man who violated an exclusion order requiring him to submit to forced relocation during World War II.

Beshear announced Friday that attendees of any gatherings over Easter weekend would have their license plates recorded and be issued a notice from the health department to quarantine for 14 days.

Plaintiffs TJ Roberts, Randall Daniel, and Sally O’Boyle attended Easter Sunday services at Maryville Baptist Church near Louisville and had “Quarantine and Prosecution” notices on their cars when they came out.

Their lawyers filed suit in federal court Tuesday and cited the infamous Supreme Court decision of Korematsu v. United States, which upheld the U.S. government’s decision to put Japanese-Americans in certain internment camps during World War II. 

“In his evening briefings, the governor made clear that he was going to target religious services for these notices, apart from other gatherings. Based on the activity of the Kentucky State Police on April 12, 2020, the governor carried out his threat,” the lawsuit states.

Beshear, Boone County Attorney Robert Neace and acting Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services Eric Friedlander are listed as defendants in the suit, which was filed in federal court Tuesday.

Roberts, Daniel and O’Boyle refuse to self-quarantine unless they have COVID-19 symptoms.

“Admittedly, COVID-19 presents a serious threat to public health and, equally admittedly, defendants have a degree of discretion available to them to deal with this public health threat. Those tools, however, are not limitless. As the facts and circumstances in this complaint reveal, defendants have gone too far, and beyond the limits the Constitution permits,” the lawsuit states.

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