Government agents in New Hampshire will no longer need to obtain warrants before entering a person’s private property by force if they suspect COVID non-compliance, according to the emergency order issued by Governor Chris Sununu on Thursday.
Governor Sununu has signed an emergency executive order establishing safety procedures for the dwindling virus and punishments for violating his new orders. The fines will range from $1,000-$2,000 per day.
As The Liberty Block reported in an article on Wednesday, Sununu has already promised to send teams of cops to enforce these new laws.
“We’re going to have our enforcement teams out there”, said Sununu.
Among the new restrictions are the requirement for all persons in attendance at an organized gathering of more than 100 people to wear masks. Sununu mentioned this requirement in a press conference on Wednesday. The full emergency order published on Thursday goes much further, though.
“Whereas, in accordance with RSA 128, RSA 141-C, and RSA 147, local health officers are authorized to investigate, including inspecting sites on public and private property without the consent of the owners, all nuisances and other causes of danger to the public health…”
The order goes on to say:
“Civil penalties may be imposed for the following:
a. Failure to comply with any Emergency Order, rule or regulation issued under the State of Emergency and enforced by DPH; the fine shall be $2,000 per day;
b. Failure to cooperate in an investigation of a potential violation of an Emergency Order, the fine shall be $1,000 per day;
c. Failure to cease operations upon notification of DPH to do so, the fine shall be $1,000 per day; and
d. Failure to comply with DPH instructions after notification of a positive COVID-19 test result, the fine shall be $1,000 per day.”
This ‘emergency order’ – implemented at a time when COVID is all but gone from New Hampshire (even with the humongously inflated statistics) – seems to allow law enforcement to enter and inspect any private property without a warrant or the consent of the owner. All they need is suspicion that there is a “nuisance or other causes of danger to public health”, which could literally mean anything. Sununu has effectively declared war on one of the core foundational rights that all liberty stems from – the right to own and control private property.
As of this writing, only 13 people (1 in 100,000) in New Hampshire with COVID are in a hospital. None of those 13 are in an ICU, according to data on the New Hampshire government’s website. Considering that Sununu is increasing restrictions as the virus decreases its effect on the state, should we expect this trend to continue? As the hospitalization figure decreases to five patients, will Sununu make all people wear masks at all times, even at home? As the rate drops to zero, will Sununu implement a full-on contact tracing program? When politicians act irrationally and tyrannically, it becomes difficult to predict what they will do next.
Sununu references a few New Hampshire statutes that technically give government officials permission to enter private property without a warrant for the purposes of inspections relating to public safety. This Emergency Order seems to expand on those statutes and directs government officials and/or law enforcement to utilize those powers to enforce the Governor’s new COVID restrictions.
The order also establishes fines of $2,000 per day for violating the restrictions and $1,000 per day for neglecting to comply with an ‘investigation’. Pro-freedom activists have been warning that politicians are growing closer each day to issuing a dystopian ‘executive order’ or ‘directive’ that abolishes freedom in the name of ‘the public good’. They have been chastised as paranoid conspiracy theorists for years, but it seems that they and Ayn Rand were more prophetic than even they could have imagined.
If the indefinite suspension of property rights was intentional, civil libertarians must come to terms with the fact that the once pro-liberty Governor has become drunk with power and is now a tyrant on the rampage for total control over his subjects. When a LEO enters your property without your consent to inspect your premises for compliance with the latest COVID-related Emergency Order, will you relinquish your property rights and obey the Governor or will you stand up for your freedom, while any of it is still in existence?
