A Michigan Court of Appeals panel says an Owosso barber has to shut down under Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s COVID-19 orders.
The decision is in response to a Shiawassee County judge’s refusal to issue a cease-and-desist order instructing Karl Manke to close his shop and stop cutting hair. The appeals court says the judge cannot second-guess whether emergency instructions from Governor Whitmer and the state’s stop health officials make sense, just whether they’re legal.
Whitmer’s orders include a shutdown of barbers and hair salons to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. That prompted a May 20th protest where hair stylists and barbers illegally gave haircuts in front of the state Capitol.
The Associated Press reports that Manke says he has no plans to close. The state has also pulled Manke’s barber’s license.