Sheriff’s Not Enforcing Mask Order
Scott Lay, The Nooner
MASKS: While the California Department of Public Health issued a statewide mandatory mask order for most instances in public, it is pretty clear that enforcement by police officers is highly unlikely. In the Bee, Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks and Michael McGough report that the Sacramento County sheriff does not plan to ask his officers to write citations to those wearing masks but rather remind residents not wearing masks of the statewide order.
Agenda 21 Radio contacted several counties in California to test the waters of enforcement by local policing agencies and discovered there was universal denunciation of the order. There were many concerns regarding the safety of wearing the mask and the obvious health risks to the wearer.
“Due to the minor nature of the offense, the potential for negative outcomes during enforcement encounters, and anticipating the various ways in which the order may be violated, it would be inappropriate for deputies to criminally enforce the Governor’s mandate,” a statement from Sheriff Scott Jones said.
The Placer County Sheriff’s Office will not be enforcing Newsom’s new order, according to spokeswoman Angela Musallam.
“We do hope (people) will take the rule to heart, but we have no interest in arresting or penalizing people who aren’t wearing masks in any way,” she said.
The Placerville Police Department, in a Facebook post Thursday shortly after the government’s announcement, asked residents not to call police dispatch to report mask violations and to “use common sense and keep yourself safe.”
“This is not a police issue,” the Placerville Police Department wrote.
The mask order, as issued Thursday by Newsom and the state Department of Public Health, does not list or recommend any criminal penalties or enforcement protocols for violators.
What the statewide order does do is take the heat off county health, county/city code enforcement officials, and businesses. While police are not enforcing as a criminal manner, businesses can post the state order (as I saw at the entrance to Market 5-ONE-5 yesterday) and refuse entry of patrons not wearing a mask while saying that it’s not just store policy but a statewide order.
For the Bee, Benjy Egel writes that Sacramento-area restaurants and bars are enforcing the ban unevenly..
