Louisiana attorney general says mask mandate likely illegal

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Attorney General Jeff Landry, who is currently quarantining after testing positive for the coronavirus, issued a legal opinion Wednesday saying the governor's statewide mask mandate and bar restrictions to combat the outbreak appear to violate Louisiana's constitution.

The Republican attorney general's office said Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards' order requiring most people to wear face coverings, limiting bars to takeout and delivery and banning gatherings of more than 50 people in indoor spaces is “likely unconstitutional and unenforceable.”

“Although the mask mandate and the 50-person limit may be good recommendations for personal safety, they may not be enforced with financial or criminal penalties,” Landry wrote. “Both businesses acting under color of law as mask police and actual police acting as mask police could face liability if individual civil rights are violated due to the proclamation.”

Landry's legal assessment doesn't carry the force of law, but the advisory opinion could be used as the basis for a lawsuit if someone wants to challenge Edwards' regulations. A group of eight Republican lawmakers asked for Landry's assessment.

Edwards defended the order, in effect since Monday.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that what we did is not just warranted by the circumstances we face with COVID-19, it's required. And it’s clearly within the legal authority that I have," Edwards, a lawyer, said on his monthly radio show.

He noted the attorney general's opinion comes a day after Vice President Mike Pence, in a visit to Louisiana, complimented Edwards' response to the pandemic and suggested residents should comply with the statewide mask mandate and other Edwards regulations.

“We support Gov. John Bel Edwards and his...