Gov. Charlie Baker s extensive, executive order-fueled pandemic response is justifiable under state law and did not violate the constitutional rights of businesses and organizations affected by mandatory shutdowns, the state s highest court ruled Thursday.
Six months after the New Civil Liberties Alliance sued Massachusetts on behalf of business owners and religious institutions, the Supreme Judicial Court upheld the Baker Administration s emergency actions, concluding that the governor acted within the emergency powers afforded to governors under a 1950 law.
The consequential decision allows the state s COVID-19 strategy to continue along its current trajectory, avoiding a sudden and dramatic shift in how leaders approach the public health emergency amid rapid transmission of the highly infectious virus and dwindling hospital capacity.