Mar. 1, 2022

8. Ottawa County Responds to Appeal

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Summary of Ottawa County’s Response to the Appeal

The Appeal should be dismissed to prevent a “minority of activists” from getting “their uninformed way.”

Uninformed Activists?

Does Ottawa County consider the 1,000 parents who protested the harmful mask mandate on August 24, 2021, uninformed activists?

Why does Ottawa County continue to ignore the voices of parents, teachers, health professionals, and business owners challenging government overreach?

Why does the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners refuse to protect the natural, fundamental rights of parents to raise their kids?

Jan. 3, 2022

7. Appeal Filed in Michigan Court of Appeals

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Dec. 6, 2021

6. Ruling from Judge Jon Hulsing

  1. The judge ruled against the parents.
  2. This ruling can be appealed.
  3. The judge’s ruling is that an unelected, unaccountable Health Officer (Lisa Stefanovsky) can rule 300,000 people in Ottawa County, for as long as she desires, by simple claim of “imminent danger” due to an epidemic.
  4. The judge finished his comments with the quotes you see below.

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Quotes from the Judge

December 6, 2021

“Can a local health officer abuse his or her authority? Absolutely! What can be done? County board hired her, county board can fire her.”

– Hon. Jon Hulsing (12/6/2021)

“One can think of a number of situations where a local health officer could exceed his or her ground of common sense. Fire the officer [or change state] law.”

– Hon. Jon Hulsing (12/6/2021)

Nov. 29, 2021

5. Plaintiff’s Response to Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss

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Nov. 4, 2021

4. Request for Summary Disposition

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Oct. 25, 2021

3. Plaintiffs’ Updated Complaint

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Oct. 11, 2021

2. Ottawa County’s Response

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Sep. 20, 2021

1. Plaintiffs’ Complaint

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We live in a Constitutional Republic where a single, unelected person should not have unlimited power to rule over the daily lives of 300,000 people.

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners should fire Lisa Stefanovsky. Unfortunately, the commissioners have proven they will not take action to defend the people, the Constitution, or freedom.

So… what is the solution? Replace the County Commissioners. How can you help? Click the orange button to learn more.

Quick Summary

The plaintiffs are asking the Court to invalidate the mask mandate and declare:

  1. The orders are “regulations” under the public health code;
  2. As regulations, they don’t take effect until ratified by the County Commission;
  3. Unratified orders are an invalid exercise of governmental authority.

The central legal question in this case—whether the mask mandate orders are subject to County Commission oversight—is now clearly framed for judicial review.

Argument were heard in person at the Ottawa County Circuit Court in Grand Haven. The attorneys for the plaintiffs and defendants argued the case and answered the Court’s questions.

When the hearing was done, the Court made a ruling on the spot instead of waiting 56 days. To summarize the ruling in simple terms, the judge talked about how the Michigan law is poorly written, and he ruled that the health director can do anything she wants, for as long as she wants, for any reason she deems valid, as long as she calls it an “emergency.”

Please donate to help pay legal bills for the lawsuit.

Government Overreach Must Be Challenged

Ottawa Impact is raising money to help the people of Ottawa County fund this lawsuit.

Please donate to the Legal Fund to support this lawsuit.

Excerpts from Ottawa County’s Response

These images show parts of Ottawa County’s response to the lawsuit.

Request for Relief

The Plaintiffs respectfully request that this Honorable Court:

a. Under MCL 333.2441, the County Commission has a mandatory statutory duty to exercise oversight over the Health Department’s regulations;

b. Any orders promulgated by the Health Department under MCL 333.2451, MCL33.2453, MCL 333.2433, and MCL 333.2428(2) are “regulations” within the plain meaning of MCL 333.2441; and

c. Under the plain language of MCL 333.2441, the Health Department’s Reconciled Mask Mandate is a “regulation” subject to the County Commission’s approval or disapproval.

d. The Health Department’s Reconciled Mask Mandate is procedurally invalid and legally inoperative because it was never approved by the County Commission.

Plaintiffs also ask this Court to issue a writ of mandamus that orders the County Commission to fulfill its statutory duty and approve or disapprove of any Health Department school mask mandate.