By Paul Joseph Watson – 4/6/2020
WHO Director Was Top Member of Violent Ethiopian Communist Party
Now we know why he loves China so much.
By Paul Joseph Watson – 4/6/2020
The Director-General of the World Health Organization is a former member of a violent revolutionary communist party in Ethiopia that denied emergency medical treatment to an ethnic group and he is accused of personally overseeing the extradition of dissidents who were later imprisoned and tortured.
As we have previously highlighted, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has repeatedly parroted Chinese Communist Party talking points, constantly heaping praise on Beijingâs response to coronavirus despite the fact that China hid the truth about its spread and viciously silenced scientists and doctors who tried to warn the world.
Now we know why.
As John Martin explains in his excellent piece âThe Crimes of Tedros Adhanomâ, during his time in Ethiopia, the WHO chief was a member of the Tigray Peopleâs Liberation Front (TPLF), a violent communist revolutionary party which was listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government in the 90âs.
According to one Ethiopian newspaper, Adhanom was listed as the 3rd most important member of the politbureau standing committee in the TPLF.
Martin writes how the TPLF engaged in âsystematic discrimination and human rights abusesâ by refusing emergency healthcare to the Amhara ethnic group because of their affiliation with the opposition party. The Ministry of Health that oversaw these abuses was led at the time by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Birth rates were recorded to be significantly lower in the Amhara region compared to other regions and 2 million Amhara people âdisappearedâ from the subsequent population census.
As Tucker Carlson highlighted earlier this week, Adhanom âgot his job with Chinese support after he covered up cholera outbreaks in his home countryâ of Egypt.
Tedros has denied the allegation, which centered around claims he had downplayed cholera epidemics in Ethiopia in 2006, 2009 and 2011 by passing them off as âacute watery diarrhea,â a symptom of cholera.
âInternational organisations were pressured not to call it Cholera (despite the UN testing the infected and finding Cholera), and were pressured by government employees not to reveal the number of infected. Another stunning victory for the health minister,â writes Martin.
After he was appointed foreign minister of Ethiopia in 2012, dissidents and journalists across the country were subjected to a brutal government crackdown, leading some to flee to exile in nearby Yemen.
Adhanom was personally responsible for negotiating the extradition of these dissidents back to Ethiopia, some of whom were subsequently imprisoned and tortured.
âOne such case was a British citizen Andy Tsege who was arrested at Sanaâa airport and twice given a death sentence in Ethiopia,â writes Martin. âThis led to the involvement of the British government who threatened denial of aid to Ethiopia unless he be granted asylum. Tedros responded that Tsege was âbeing treated very well. He even has a laptop, have you ever heard of a political prisoner with a laptop?â Andy of course, after his return to the UK told a somewhat different story of being tortured for days on end, alongside dozens of other prisoners.â
Dissidents being imprisoned and tortured? No wonder Adhanom is so effusive in his praise for China.
It gets worse.
In 2016, the Ethiopian government attempted to force relocate 15000 people in the Oromia region because it wanted to requisition their land. This led to mass protests followed by mass shootings and a stampede that killed 500 people according to Human Rights Watch. The government then embarked on another brutal crackdown, arresting 70,000 people.
Adhanom subsequently tried to downplay the violence, falsely claiming the police werenât armed and that the numbers werenât as high as stated.
After ascending to his lofty position within the World Health Organization, Adhanom appointed mass murdering dictator Robert Mugabe to be a âgoodwill ambassadorâ to the WHO while also defending Uhuru Kenyatta, under whose government 1,300 people were killed following rigged elections.
âTedros of course takes every chance he can to praise the good governance of China, and given the human rights record of the Peopleâs Republic, itâs no wonder he likes them so much,â writes Martin. âFrom projects like media propaganda centres, mass relocations, and social credit style score cards, Ethiopiaâs governance in many ways resembles a carbon copy of the Chinese authoritarian model. Complete with a one party state and focus on profit over human rights.â
In the immediate aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak, the World Health Organization, under Adhanomâs direction, amplified Chinese fake news that there was no âhuman to humanâ transmission of COVID-19 as late as January 14th, despite this having already occurred in December.
The WHO and Adhanom also repeatedly demanded countries not impose border controls, exacerbating the spread of the disease, while appearing to be more concerned about political correctness and the âstigmatizationâ of Chinese people.
âIn a sane world, instead of leading a global organisation, Tedros and his cronies would be put on trial at the International Criminal Court, tried for his crimes, and if found guilty, should spend the rest of his life in prison,â concludes Martin.
Chinaâs Disgusting Profiteering From Coronavirus Spread Exposed
CCP blocked US manufacturers exporting medical equipment so it could âcorner the marketâ and sold Italyâs own donated equipment back to the country
By Steve Watson – 4/6/2020
Several reports over the past couple of days have exposed how China is profiteering hugely from the coronavirus that it failed to contain, and the severity of the spread that the communist state lied about.
The New York Post reported on Sunday that China blocked US manufacturers from exporting personal protective equipment (PPE), which was desperately needed to protect health care workers in the hardest hit areas.
âLeading US manufacturers of medical safety gear told the White House that China prohibited them from exporting their products from the country as the coronavirus pandemic mounted.â the report states.
âExecutives from 3M and Honeywell told US officials that the Chinese government in January began blocking exports of N95 respirators, booties, gloves and other supplies produced by their factories in China,â The Post further reported.
A senior administration official told reporters that âChina paid the manufacturers their standard wholesale rates, but prohibited the vital items from being sold to anyone else.â
The report explains that âChina was trying to âcorner the world marketâ in personal protective equipmentâ  and also âimported $1.2 billion worth of  âepidemic prevention and control materialsâ from the end of January through the end of February.â
âData from Chinaâs own customs agency points to an attempt to corner the world market in PPE like gloves, goggles, and masks through massive increased purchases â even as China, the worldâs largest PPE manufacturer, was restricting exports.â the administration official added.
The report notes that the Trump administration is considering legal action against China, with senior legal adviser Jenna Ellis remarking that âPeople are dying. When you have intentional, cold-blooded premeditated action like you have with China, this would be considered first-degree murder.â
Michael Wessell of the federal US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, also slammed China, noting that American medical professionals are âstarved of PPE to fight this crisisâ because of the communist countryâs actions.
âWe understand that China has engaged in policies to try and not only develop its own capabilities, but to do so at expense of producers around the world,â Wessell said, adding that âAt a time when demand was rising to deal with the crisis, China was marshaling all of the products for its own use.â
â[China is] using it for soft power, essentially saying itâs a humanitarian gesture to try to curry goodwill with American people when some of the problems weâre facing are the direct result of Chinese policies,â Wessell added.
The AFP reports that âChina has sold nearly four billion masks to foreign countries since Marchâ as well as 37.5 million pieces of protective clothing, 16,000 ventilators and 2.84 million COVID-19 testing kits, all at a value of approximately 10.2 billion yuan ($1.4 billion).
Several of the over 50 countries that China has sold equipment to have reported the equipment to be defective, with evidence even suggesting that some of it was contaminated with coronavirus.
Chinese officials have claimed that the reports of faulty equipment âdid not reflect the full factsâ.
âIn reality there are various factors, such as China having different standards and different usage habits to other countries. Even improper use can lead to doubts over quality,â said Jiang Fan, an official with the Ministry of Commerce.
Perhaps the most disgusting exposĂ© of Chinaâs profiteering was documented in a report by The Spectator, which found that Italy donated tons of Personal Protective Equipment to China to help the communist state protect its own population when the virus first hit. However, when Italy quickly became the worst hit country on the planet, China did not return the favour, instead SELLING the same equipment back to Italy at an inflated price.
The report notes:
Chinaâs behaviour has been reprehensible, with both the US and British governments warning that there will be a reckoning.
However, the UN has rewarded the communist state with a seat at the human rights council, and the World Health Organisation defended Chinaâs actions, and parroted itâs propaganda about the virus spread for weeks.
Great Job! đ
By Mark Dice – Apr 4, 2020
Itâs funny how every one of these people get a pass! Yet trump is getting bashed as usual
Tucker: The New York Times’ coronavirus coverage can be explained in 4 steps
4/4/2020
Yet another reminder this country’s worst enemies aren’t overseas…
WHOA! Dr. Fauci in 2017: President Trump Will Be Challenged By a “Surprise Global Disease Outbreak” (VIDEO)
By Jim Hoft – April 4, 2020
Come again?
Back in 2017 at forum on pandemic preparedness at Georgetown University Dr. Fauci made an interesting statement. Fauci told the audience the Trump administration will not only be challenged by ongoing global health threats such as influenza and HIV, but also a surprise disease outbreak.
That was quite a prediction considering it was back in 2017!
Via Ned Nikolav, Ph.D. and Healio.
This is the same guy who told Americans not to worry about the coronavirus back in January.
He completely missed it.
Here is the videoâ
Google Unveils Orwellian Location Tracking Data for Wuhan Virus Lockdown
By Jose Nino – Apr 4, 2020
According to a report from CBS News, Google will be using its massive compilation of data to track the movements of people around the world.
From there, it will provide this data to policymakers and researchers in order to combat the Wuhan Virus.
The Big Tech titan published the so-called Community Mobility Reports for 131 countries. These reports feature localized data on how to travel to places like stores and parks and has been changed during the last month. In the United Statesâ case, Googleâs data is divided on a county by county basis, which shows a massive reduction in peopleâs movement in urban and suburban communities âin some cases there are drops of 80 percent â with modest declines in rural areas in comparison.
Take for example, New York. According to Googleâs mobility tracking data for New York witnessed a 62% decline for retail and recreation venues, 68% decline for public transit hubs like subways, buses, and train stations, 46% decline for workplaces, and 32% decline for grocery stores and pharmacies as of March 29.
In New York County, the reduction is even more dramatic. Movement dropped 86% for retail and recreation, 78% for transit, 57% for workplaces, and 51% for groceries and pharmacies.
The reports âaim to provide insights into what has changed in response to policies aimed at combating COVID-19,â the company stated on the website where the reports are published. âThe reports chart movement trends over time by geography, across different categories of places such as retail and recreation, groceries and pharmacies, parks, transit stations, workplaces, and residential.â
The company plans on updating its figures regularly. It claims that the data is designed in a manner that protects peopleâs anonymity.
Damian Collins, a British Parliament member who has spearheaded efforts to investigate Googleâs data practices, revealed in an email to CBS News that the reports indicate social distancingâs potential to limit the Wuhan Virusâ impact. However, he advised that people be cautious about in letting Google have the power to track peopleâs daily lives.
âThis certainly shows the impact that the social restrictions are having on daily life, and helps policy makers determine the effectiveness of these strategies,â stated Collins. âIt also illustrates the level of background surveillance that has become commonplace, without people really being aware of it.â
Jason Kint, the CEO of Digital Content Next, a trade group that represents digital publishers, agreed with Collins and is skeptical of Googleâs underlying motives.
âWhile itâs a noble effort and the anonymous presentation is interesting, itâs asking a lot to trust a company whoâs entire business model is about surveillance and monetization of as much personal data across our lives as they can collect,â Kint stated.
Collins believes that Googleâs tracking data may be useful for policymakers, there are still questions about potential privacy violations and future mass surveillance abuses.
âIn a crisis people may consent to this, but there has never really been a public debate about whether we agree to it in principle. The aftermath of this crisis may start such a debate,â Collins remarked.
Big Techâs influence has been the source of public discussion since Trump got elected.
It has been instrumental in suppressing dissident voices and will now likely be greatly empowered by this new crisis.Conservatives would be wise to be skeptical of both corporations and government.
FAUCI AND BIRX BOTH HAVE BIG-MONEY BILL GATES CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
Faces of coronavirus pandemic response connected to globalists
By Patrick Howley – April 4, 2020
President Donald Trump is fighting to find a medical solution for Coronavirus in the short term, expressing hope that the anti-malaria drug Chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine can help patients suffering from the Chinese virus.
The truth is that President Donald Trump is locked in an intense power struggle with Bill Gates, who is pushing his vaccines, which may not be available to the public until after Novemberâs election. Gates has a lot of pull in the medical world, he has a multi-million dollar relationship with Dr. Fauci, and Fauci originally took the Gates line supporting vaccines and casting doubt on Chloroquine.
Coronavirus response team member Dr. Deborah Birx, appointed by former president Obama to serve as United States Global AIDS Coordinator, also sits on the board of a group that has received billions from Gatesâ foundation, and Birx reportedly used a disputed Bill Gates-funded model for the White Housesâ Coronavirus effort. Gates is a big proponent for a population lockdown scenario for the Coronavirus outbreak.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID, a division of National Institutes of Health, NIH) director Dr. Anthony Fauci, who is represented by the Aurumn Speakers Bureau, initially criticized Trumpâs hopeful assessment of Chloroquine, saying in an interview with CNNâs Anderson Cooper that âThereâs no magic drug for coronavirus right now,â and lectured, âLet me put it into perspective for the viewers .. there has been anecdotal non-proven data that it [chloroquine] works⊠but when you have an uncontrolled trial you can never definitely say that it works.â
But now Fauci has changed his tune and launched a public relations campaign huddling closer to Trump. Fauci said that he would definitely prescribe Chloroquine for patients. âYeah, of course, particularly if people have no other option. These drugs are approved drugs for other reasons. Theyâre anti-malaria drugs, and theyâre drugs against certain autoimmune diseases like lupus. Physicians throughout the country can prescribe that in an off-label way. Which means they can write it for something it was not approved for.â
But Fauciâs apparent hostility toward Chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine remains clear:
The true behind-the-scenes story is coming to light:
Bill Gates Cast Doubt on Chloroquine And Said He Is Running A Study On It
Here is what Gates said regarding Chloroquine in a Reddit Ask Me Anything session:
âThere are a lot of therapeutic drugs being examined. This is one of many but it is not proven. If it works we will need to make sure the finite supplies are held for the patients who need it most. We have a study going on to figure this out. We also have a screening effort to look at all the ideas for Therapeutics because the number being proposed is very large and only the most promising should be tried in patients. China was testing some things but now they have so few cases that that testing needs to move to other locations,â Gates said.
Gates Is Funding Coronavirus Vaccine Candidates That Would Compete With Chloroquine, And Dr. Fauciâs Agency Is Co-Partnering On The Project
The company Moderna is working on a Coronavirus vaccine, which they expect will go into clinical trials in April. Dr. Fauci has heaped praise on Moderna and said that a vaccine is the only way to definitively assure the end of the virus. Gates is working on multiple Coronavirus vaccine projects.
The New Eastern Outlook journal reported:
âGates Foundation money is backing vaccine development on every front. Inovio Pharmaceuticals of Pennsylvania received $9 million from the Gates-backed CEPI, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, to develop a vaccine, INO-4800, which is about to test on humans in April, a suspiciously rapid time frame. In addition Gates Foundation just gave the company an added $5 million to develop a proprietary smart device for intradermal delivery of the new vaccine.
In addition Gates Foundation monies via CEPI are financing development of a radical new vaccine method known as messengerRNA or mRNA.
They are co-funding the Cambridge, Massachusetts biotech company, Moderna Inc., to develop a vaccine against the Wuhan novel coronavirus, now called SARS-CoV-2. Modernaâs other partner is the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Head of NIAID is Dr Anthony Fauci, the person at the center of the Trump Administration virus emergency response. Notable about the Fauci-Gates Moderna coronavirus vaccine, mRNA-1273, is that it has been rolled out in a matter of weeks, not years, and on February 24 went directly to Fauciâs NIH for tests on human guinea pigs, not on mice as normal. Modernaâs chief medical adviser, Tal Zaks, argued, âI donât think proving this in an animal model is on the critical path to getting this to a clinical trialâŠ
Add to this the fact that the Gates Foundation and related entities such as CEPI constitute the largest funders of the public-private entity known as WHO, and that its current director, Tedros Adhanom, the first WHO director in history not a medical doctor, worked for years on HIV with the Gates Foundation when Tedros was a government minister in Ethiopia, and we see that there is practically no area of the current coronavirus pandemic where the footprints of the omnipresent Gates are not to be found. If that is to the good of mankind or grounds to be worried, time will tell.â
âGoing into a Phase One trial within three months of getting the sequence is unquestionably the world indoor record. Nothing has ever gone that fast,â according to Fauci.
While it is uncertain that Modernaâs answer is the solution, Fauci notes that the only surefire way to stop an outbreak is to develop a vaccine. Moderna manufactures drugs around messenger RNA molecules that carry instructions to reprogram cells in the body to operate differently and beneficially. Currently, its genetic technology has not created a vaccine for humans.
The first study of the vaccine will take place at NIAID. If it is successful, a second trial would feature closer to hundreds of people. Pending the results of future studies and regulations, the vaccine may not be readily available until next year, Fauci said.
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News reported in 2016 on Gatesâ relationship with Moderna:
âModerna Therapeutics said today it received an initial $20 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a new affordable combination of messenger RNAâbased antibody therapeutics geared toward preventing HIV infection.
The grant is intended for use in the antibody combinationâs preclinical study and a Phase I clinical trial. Gates Foundationâs $20 million funding could potentially grow into a total $100 million commitmentâincluding the HIV antibody projectâtoward development of additional mRNA-based treatments for various infectious diseases, Moderna said.
âThe foundationâs mission to help all people lead healthy and productive lives is well aligned with Modernaâs mission to deliver on the promise of transformative mRNA science to bring new medicines to patients,â Moderna CEO StĂ©phane Bancel said in a statement.
Moderna said the development effort would be led by its infectious diseaseâfocused venture company, ValeraâŠâ
Fauci Is Tight with Bill Gates
âHeâs very good about not overpromising,â Gates said of Fauci in 2018 as Gates worked on a universal flu vaccine. NIAID Council minutes from 2019 show Fauciâs agency identifying a Gates Foundation workshop as being of interest. Gates met with Fauci in 2017 âto discuss research opportunities in global health.â In 2010, Fauci was named to the Leadership Council of the âDecade of Vaccinesâ Collaboration, which the World Health Organizations, Fauciâs agency NIAID, UNICEF, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation convened.
Fauci hung out with Gates in 2018 at an NIH workshop:
Gates Admitted That He Stopped President Trumpâs Planned Vaccine Safety Commission With Robert Kennedy Jr. in the Early Days of the Trump Administration
In October 2019, Fauci Announced A Partnership Between the Gates Foundation and Fauciâs Agency, In Which The Gates Foundation Pledged To Spend $100 Million
The American Journal of Managed Care reported on October 28, 2019:
âThe National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced plans to invest at least $100 million over the next 4 years to develop gene-based therapies for 2 diseases: HIV and sickle cell disease (SCD). The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Gates Foundation) will also contribute $100 million to the goal of advancing these potential cures, with an aim toward providing affordable, globally available treatment that will be accessible to patients in low-resource settings.
According to the NIH, the collaboration between the organizations will focus on 2 key areas. First, it will identify potential candidate cures for preclinical and clinical evaluation, and second, it will define long-term opportunities to partner with organizations in AfricaâŠ
âThis collaboration is an ambitious step forward, harnessing the most cutting-edge scientific tools and NIHâs sizable global HIV research infrastructure to one day deliver a cure and end the global HIV pandemic,â said NIAID director Anthony S. Fauci, MD, in a statement announcing the initiative. âWe are taking into account those with the greatest need at the foundation of this effort, to ensure that, if realized, this exceptional public health achievement will be made accessible to all.â
Dr. Fauci Is Speaking At The World Vaccine Congress in September Alongside A Coterie of Public Sector and Private Sector Folks From WHO, CDC, FDA, Merck, Pfizer, etc.
Fauci and fellow Coronavirus response team member Deborah Birx Have Democrat and Globalist Elite Friends Including Gates and Nancy Pelosi
Dr. Deborah Birx is garnering criticism for touting a disputed model for the Coronavirus outbreak prepared by the University of Washingtonâs IHME, a project of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Birxâs license to practice medicine in the state of Pennsylvania expired in 2014.
Deborah Birx Sits on the Board of The Global Fund, which is heavily funded by Bill Gatesâ organizational network, as journalist Jordan Schactel discovered. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave the Global Fund a $750 million promissory note in 2012.
The Global Fund explains, âThe Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a key partner of the Global Fund, providing cash contributions, actively participating on its board and committees, and supporting the Global Fundâs advocacy, communications and fundraising efforts. The Gates Foundation has contributed US$2.24 billion to the Global Fund to date, and pledged US$760 million for the Global Fundâs Sixth Replenishment, covering 2020-2022.â
When asked whether he had spoken directly to the President, Bill Gates clarified that he had spoken to the agencies most willing to carry out his agenda; the CDC and NIH.
Coronavirus patients ordered to wear GPS ankle monitors…Louisville is forcing unwilling coronavirus patients to self-isolate. Is it right?
By Kala Kachmar and Darcy Costello – 4/3/2020
Two Louisville coronavirus patients and a family member have been ordered by circuit judges to isolate and wear tracking devices after health officials learned they’d been in public against medical advice.
Issuing health-related civil orders is new territory for the courts, according to Judge Charles Cunningham, who issued two Friday. The third was issued earlier this month when a South End resident who tested positive for coronavirus refused to self-isolate.
But the orders are essential for keeping the community safe when infected patients refuse to self-quarantine, officials said during Mayor Greg Fischer’s Facebook Live briefing Tuesday.
[This story is being provided for free to our readers during the coronavirus outbreak. Consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to The Courier Journal at courier-journal.com/subscribe. ]
As of Tuesday, seven people have died of the virus in Jefferson County and 18 across Kentucky.
“The home incarceration program is well-suited for this,” said Amy Hess, the city’s chief of public services, which includes oversight of Metro Corrections and Emergency Services. “It provides us with the proper amount of distancing. We can monitor activity after (the monitoring device) gets affixed to them ⊠to make sure they’re not further affecting the community.
“We would prefer not to have to do it at all,” she said.
Also:Â How a church revival in a small Kentucky town led to a deadly coronavirus outbreak
Cunningham told The Courier Journal on Tuesday the two individuals he ordered isolated were living together, but only one had tested positive for coronavirus.
The city’s health department submitted a request for the order, which indicated one of the individuals was “walking around” and the other, based on a phone call, was thought to be out of the house, Cunningham said.
Not enough Louisvillians are taking pandemic guidelines seriously, Fischer stressed again Tuesday. In addition to closing libraries, community centers, the zoo and even some parks over the past few weeks, he’s instructed police to cut back on the types of calls for service officers respond to.
And, in response to a lack of respect for his orders, he even had basketball rims taken off backboards in parks.
Both Hess and Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad said the biggest fear is the spread of the virus among first responders such as police officers, firefighters and ambulance workers, especially when “the surge” of coronavirus patients that’s expected starts to overwhelm local hospitals.
So far, one police officer and two firefighters have tested positive for COVID-19, city officials have said. At least eight additional firefighters went into self-quarantine in connection to Louisville Fire’s two positive cases.
Dr. Sarah Moyer:Â These new symptoms may mean you have or are spreading the coronavirus
Too. Cute:Â Kentucky nursing home posts ‘thank you’ video to health care workers fighting COVID-19
A Metro Corrections officer who was sent to attach ankle monitors following Friday’s isolation order has a 101-degree fever and is being tested for COVID-19, said Tracy Dotson, spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 77, which represents the workers.
Dotson said corrections officers haven’t received the same protective equipment as LMPD officers or Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies also sent to confirmed coronavirus patients’ homes.
“If we’re going to be doing this, fine. That’s what we signed up for,” Dotson said. “But we’d like to be adequately protected, as our sister agencies are. We don’t think that’s too big of an ask. If nothing else, just for peace of mind for those officers.
“It would make me nervous if I showed up in a paper mask and some safety goggles and I saw the two guys there to work with me from different agencies in full respirators,” he added.
Steve Durham, spokesman for Metro Corrections, declined to confirm whether an officer is being tested. He also said first responders wear personal protective equipment recommended by medical professionals, which includes a gown, goggles, gloves and a mask.
‘Feeling our way through’
The first judge to issue an order requiring self-isolation was in Nelson County March 15, when a 53-year-old checked himself out of the University of Louisville Hospital against medical advice after testing positive.
Cunningham said the state’s Administrative Office of Courts put out a 200-page document over a decade ago that gives emergency guidance to circuit judges on topics like public health.
“It’s something we’re all feeling our way through,” he said. “We’re trying to figure out how this should be done.”
Jefferson Circuit Chief Judge Angela McCormick Bisig’s March 21 order required the first Jefferson County individual stay in his home for 14 days. Any violations, it said, may result in his arrest and criminal charges.
It said the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department would serve the order and Metro Corrections would fit him with a global-positioning device. The order said he’d be constantly monitored to ensure he stays home.
What to do:Â 10 steps to follow if you think you may have the coronavirus
Dotson, spokesman for the union that represents Metro Corrections workers, questioned the ethics of using tracking devices on Louisville residents who have not been charged with a crime.
It is a judge’s order, he acknowledged, but “our mandate is once people are charged with a crime, we’re to do whatever it is we do with them.”
“These people aren’t charged with a crime,” he said.
“For my people on the ground, that’s a concern for them.”
Kentucky law gives county health departments the clear power to isolate infected patients who refuse to stay home. Isolation separates sick people with a communicable disease, while quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people potentially exposed.
Nelson County Judge-Executive Dean Watts said the involuntary isolation of the county resident was permitted after he declared a county emergency.
In most states, breaking a quarantine order is a misdemeanor, according to the Centers for Disease Control, although Kentucky law does not provide a penalty.
Courier Journal reporter Andrew Wolfson contributed to this report.
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