Cooper’s COVID shutdowns of bars violated NC constitution, Court of Appeals says

The North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to keep bars shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic violated the state constitution.

A panel of three Republican judges wrote that while Cooper had the authority to shut down some businesses in the interests of public health, his decision to begin reopening restaurants but not bars violated the rights of those business owners.

“The unequal treatment of Plaintiffs had the effect of denying their fundamental right to earn a living by the continued operation of their businesses,” the court wrote.

The case began in 2020 after a group of nearly 200 bar owners sued Cooper for leaving them out of part of the state’s reopening plan, arguing that the distinction between bars and restaurants was arbitrary.

The court partially agreed, finding that Cooper’s decision violated the bar owners’ right to equal protection of the laws.

The judges rejected some of the bar owners’ other claims, such as their argument that Cooper unconstitutionally took their property away from them without proper compensation.

The case now goes back to the trial court, though either side could appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Representatives for Cooper and the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to a request for comment.