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Supreme Court Blocks Cuomo's COVID Restrictions On Religious Gatherings
By
John Del Signore
and
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 26, 2020
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Ken Cedeno/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
By
John Del Signore
and
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 26, 2020
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The United States Supreme Court sided with religious groups in New York City arguing that Governor Andrew Cuomo's limits on religious gatherings, intended to slow the spread of COVID-19, are unconstitutional. In a 5-4 ruling issued the night before Thanksgiving, the court's conservative justices ruled that the pandemic occupancy restrictions violate the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion.
The decision was the opposite of recent rulings handed down over similar lawsuits in Nevada and California, when the Supreme Court upheld state governments' authority to limit indoor religious gatherings during the pandemic. In those cases, the court ruled 5-4 to reject challenges from religious groups opposed to the restrictions, with Chief Justice John Roberts siding with the court's more liberal members.
Those prior rulings came before the September death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose seat has since been filled by far-right justice Amy Coney Barrett, who was nominated by President Donald Trump and confirmed by Republicans weeks before the election, outraging Democrats who recalled Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's refusal to allow a vote on then-President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee nine months before the 2016 presidential election.
Barrett sided with the majority in Wednesday's ruling, her first decisive contribution to the court and a clear signal of what to expect from the Supreme Court in years to come.
The court's decision was issued in response to lawsuits filed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and two Orthodox Jewish Synagogues in Brooklyn, where Cuomo had implemented red and orange zone restrictions that limited indoor religious gatherings to 10 and 25 people respectively, regardless of capacity. The Brooklyn synagogues argued that Cuomo had "singled out a particular religion for blame and retribution for an uptick in a societywide pandemic.”
In a call with reporters on Thursday morning, Governor Cuomo called the ruling "irrelevant" and "moot" because it affected red zone restrictions that no longer exist.
"I think this was really an opportunity for the court to express its philosophy and politics. It doesn't have any practical effect," Cuomo said.
"I'm a former altar boy," he added. "So I fully respect religion, and if there's a time in life we need it, the time is now. But we want to make sure we keep people safe at the same time."
Asked how the ruling would affect future red zone restrictions on religious gatherings, the governor's office pointed to comments made by Cuomo's special counsel, Beth Garvey, during the conference call.
“For the other zones, the capacity restrictions are still not questioned by that court ruling...What the opinion addressed was the per person limit in those areas. So 25 percent in a red zone, 33 percent in an orange zone as it relates to the capacity of the religious institution — and also noting that additional restrictions like wearing of masks and social distancing — could also certainly be enforced.”
The unsigned decision from the majority points to different gathering restrictions within the zoned areas, depending on the establishment. "In a red zone, while a synagogue or church may not admit more than 10 persons, businesses categorized as 'essential' may admit as many people as they wish," the majority wrote. "And the list of 'essential' businesses includes things such as acupuncture facilities, camp grounds, garages, as well as many whose services are not limited to those that can be regarded as essential, such as all plants manufacturing chemicals and microelectronics and all transportation facilities."
In a concurring opinion, Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote: "It is time — past time — to make plain that, while the pandemic poses many grave challenges, there is no world in which the Constitution tolerates color-coded executive edicts that reopen liquor stores and bike shops but shutter churches, synagogues and mosques."
Roberts, in his dissenting opinion, wrote that "it is a significant matter to override determinations made by public health officials concerning what is necessary for public safety in the midst of a deadly pandemic." Roberts's opinion in the California lawsuit in June also noted that the restrictions there, similar to New York, "exempts or treats more leniently only dissimilar activities, such as operating grocery stores, banks and laundromats, in which people neither congregate in large groups nor remain in close proximity for extended periods.”
COVID-19 superspreader events have been traced to indoor religious gatherings, particularly when congregations gather without masks to pray and sing, which makes airborne transmission of the virus more likely. One choir practice in Washington in March famously infected 53 people, two of whom died from coronavirus. In July, the NY Times reported that at least 650 coronavirus cases "have been linked to nearly 40 churches and religious events across the United States since the beginning of the pandemic."
Wednesday's decision came despite a letter sent to the court last week from New York's Solicitor General Barbara Underwood, notifying the court that the churches and synagogues that brought the lawsuits were no longer subject to the restrictions to which they objected, because Cuomo had downgraded their locations to yellow zones, where indoor gatherings were permitted at 50% capacity. Indeed, on Tuesday night, the NYC Sheriff's office refused to shut down a large indoor gathering at a Bed-Stuy synagogue, deciding that the event did not exceed 50% of the venue's capacity.
The dissenting opinion from Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justice Elena Kagan, argues that "the specific applicant houses of worship are now in yellow zones where they can hold services up to 50% of maximum capacity. And the applicants do not challenge any yellow zone restrictions, as the conditions in the yellow zone provide them with more than the relief they asked for in their applications."
But the majority, which in addition to Justices Barrett and Gorsuch included Justice Samuel Alito, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Justice Clarence Thomas, wrote that "injunctive relief is still called for because the applicants remain under a constant threat that the area in question will be reclassified as red or orange. The Governor regularly changes the classification of particular areas without prior notice."
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn celebrated the Supreme Court decision on Thursday, with Bishop of Brooklyn Nicholas DiMarzio issuing a statement saying, "I have said from the beginning the restrictions imposed by Governor Cuomo were an overreach that did not take into account the size of our churches or the safety protocols that have kept parishioners safe. Catholics in Brooklyn and Queens have adhered to all COVID-19 safety protocols to attend Mass and receive the Eucharist. Our churches have not been the cause of any outbreaks. We have taken our legal battle this far because we should be considered essential, for what could be more essential than safely gathering in prayer in a time of pandemic."
Daniel Mach, director of the ACLU's Program of Freedom of Religion and Belief, and Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, both criticized the court's ruling in statements. “The freedom to worship is one of our most cherished fundamental rights, but it does not include a license to harm others or endanger public health," Mach said.
“New York’s temporary restrictions on indoor gatherings do not discriminate against houses of worship, and, in fact, treat them better than comparable non-religious gatherings," Lieberman added. "The Supreme Court's decision will unfortunately undermine New York’s efforts to curb the pandemic.”
This story has been updated with the governor's comments and comments from the ACLU and NYCLU.
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COVID-19
coronavirus
supreme court
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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