Board of Health declines to appeal COVID-19 ruling, Murphy vows to continue legal battle

CHARLEVOIX — In a unanimous decision, the Health Department of Northwest Michigan's Board of Health opted not to appeal Otsego County Judge Colin Hunter's recent ruling that questioned the constitutionality of certain state statutes used to enforce COVID-19 restrictions during the pandemic.

Judge Hunter's ruling stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Ian Murphy, owner of the Iron Pig Smokehouse bar and restaurant in Gaylord. The lawsuit challenged the legality of state statutes cited by the health department in issuing emergency public health orders. These orders led to the temporary loss of the Iron Pig’s liquor license and food permit, as well as fines and the eventual forced closure of the business for remaining open during parts of the pandemic.

Board members cited financial concerns as the primary reason for not pursuing an appeal. The Board of Health's attorney Mathew Cross noted that $15,000 had already been spent on the case, and an additional $15,000 could be required if they chose to appeal the decision.

Board of Health Chair Scott Hankins was the first to express his reluctance to spend more money on defending lawsuits against the health department. He emphasized that the Michigan Attorney General’s office should handle the defense of the Michigan public health code. Hankins added that continuing to fund these legal battles only benefits attorneys and declared his opposition to pursuing an appeal.

“We’ve had several lawsuits that have been addressed to this board and this health department in the last few years. We have a judge's decision — some are going to like it and some are going to hate it — but we have a judge's determination and in the back of my mind I don’t want to spend any more money from our four counties to defend what should be defended, in my not so humble opinion, by the Michigan Attorney General’s office," said Hankins. "This is a Michigan public health code and I think if the state wants to pick this up they certainly have every right to do so but I don’t believe that our constituents in Otsego, Antrim, Charlevoix and Emmet counties should be continually bled dry ... the only people who win in this deal are the attorneys. I am not in favor of pursuing the appeal."

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More: Judge's ruling again questions legal validity of health laws used for pandemic restrictions

Otsego County board members Jonathan Turnbull and Henry Mason expressed concerns about the unconstitutionality of the pandemic restrictions that remained unaddressed, but reiterated their desire to avoid spending additional taxpayer dollars.

After the board's unanimous vote to not appeal Hunter's decision, Murphy addressed the board to express his gratitude and emphasize that his stance was not a personal attack on Health Officer Dan Thorell or his predecessor, Lisa Peacock.

However, Murphy still voiced his dissatisfaction with parts of Hunter's ruling and declared his intention to appeal. He criticized the lack of clear guidelines in the current legislation regarding epidemics, stating, "The standards for 2451 are virtually non-existent."

Murphy also stressed his reluctance to use taxpayer dollars for the appeal but felt compelled to continue the legal battle, citing the state's actions against his business, including a cease and desist order issued before Thanksgiving.

“I am not satisfied with Judge Hunter’s ruling. I will be appealing. I am not satisfied with 2451 being constitutional while it sits there and while I do have a Circuit Court remedy it is not good enough. The standards that were spoken of earlier, the guardrails for 2451 are virtually non-existent," Murphy said. "Having said that, the last thing I want to do is spend anyone’s taxpayer dollars defending this nonsense but a.) I didn’t start it and b.) I need to finish it. Thank you for not trying to spend more of the taxpayer dollars and not trying to continue to come after me, but the state and this health department has come after me ... they put a cease and desist on my business the day before Thanksgiving, one of the biggest bar nights of the year. Like I said, I didn’t start it but I need to finish it."

In his decision, Hunter reaffirmed his earlier ruling that one of the health department's statutes was unconstitutional and extended this finding to a related law. While he upheld the constitutionality of another statute used by HDNW, Hunter also determined that it violated Murphy's right to due process.

— Contact reporter Annie Doyle at (231) 675-0099 and adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Board of Health declines to appeal COVID-19 ruling, Murphy vows to continue legal battle