Michael Berry

Michael Berry

Michael Berry has drunk homemade moonshine from North Carolina with Robert Earl Keen, met two presidents with the same last name, been cussed at by...Full Bio

 

Several Texas Sheriffs Refuse To Enforce Gov. Abbott’s Facemask Order

So far, sheriffs in at least eight counties across Texas are refusing to bother people who defy Gov. Abbott’s order requiring facemasks in public.

The sheriffs in Denton, Nacogdoches, Smith, Upshur, Kerr, Gillespie, Panola and Montgomery say they will not fine or cite people for not masking up in public.

Abbott’s order states that authorities can fine repeat offenders up to $250.

Denton County Sheriff Tracy Murphree shot back at critics upset that he’s refusing to enforce the order. Sheriff Murphree wrote in a Facebook post “A week ago they were carrying signs that said F the police, and demanding police be defunded. They were ignoring the Denton curfew order and blocked city streets. Now those same people are mad at me for refusing to enforce the mask mandate issued by the Governor. Their hypocrisy is mind blowing...”

Sheriff Muphree points out to critics that Abbott’s mandate is “is an executive order not a law. Only the legislature can make law. So the accusations that I’m refusing to enforce the law are not true... We can't spend our time running from place to place for calls about mask we can really do nothing about."

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s office put out a statement after Abbott’s order saying they They will “take NO action to enforce” his order, pointing out “the language included in the Governor’s order could subject our agency, and Montgomery County as a whole, to civil liability as stopping someone for a face covering issue could be construed or misconstrued as a detention.

In a Facebook live video, Nacogdoches County Sheriff JasonBridges said Abbott’s order on facemask & gathering size of 10 or more people “borderline infringing on” constitutional rights.

Here in Houston, Houston Police Officers' Union President Joe Gamaldi “while we in law enforcement are desperately trying to build trust w/our community and are spread incredibly thin with the huge rise in violent crime, we are now expected to enforce yet another draconian mask law. Everyone needs to wear a mask, but don’t put us in this position.”


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