NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) – New York City restaurants have lost a key ruling in their fight against Mayor Bill de Blasio’s orders that they boot customers who have not been vaccinated for COVID-19.
Federal judge Brian Cogan decided those plaintiffs are unlikely to succeed and rejected their requests for preliminary injunctions against three emergency executive orders that force them to prevent unvaccinated individuals from remaining in certain indoor facilities for prolonged periods of time.
Individuals, businesses and the Independent Restaurant Owners Association Rescue argue the orders violate their 13th and 14th amendment rights.
“Plaintiffs’ position is unable to withstand the simple observation that all unvaccinated individuals, regardless of race, religion, or national origin, are treated the same under these EEOs,” Cogan wrote.
“Thus, the EEOs are both facially neutral and not applied in a discriminatory fashion against the claimed class. Any African American or Hispanic individual has a right to access a ‘covered premise,’ if that individual has documents showing they are vaccinated.
“The same is true for any other individual in New York City. To the extent that the EEOs disproportionately affect the African American or Hispanic communities, this disparity can be remedied by those individuals getting vaccinated. Federal, state, and local officials have worked to make vaccines ubiquitously available.”
Plaintiffs say the more than-$120 million campaign to convince minorities to get vaccinated shows de Blasio tried to force the vaccine on their communities under penalty of onerous restrictions.
“I don’t see it that way,” Cogan wrote. “Rather, this fact indicates that the mayor has made an effort to ensure these communities would have access to the vaccine and not be targeted by the EEOs he is now issuing.”
Cogan also rejected due process, First Amendment and freedom of religion claims, writing “Not all rights are entitled to protection. Only rights that are fundamental or implicit in the concept of ordered liberty are accorded protection as a matter of substantive due process.”