Mask Mandate Court Case: Anne Arundel Judge Makes Ruling On Face Covering Requirement

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — A judge ruled Wednesday that the Anne Arundel County mask mandate is legal and can continue, a press release announced.

"I want to thank the Court for its wisdom in this ruling," County Executive Steuart Pittman said in a Facebook post. "Keeping this requirement in place for a little longer will help reduce the strains on our hospitals and healthcare workers, and save the lives of our friends, our neighbors, and our family members."

The news came after two business owners took Anne Arundel County officials to court over their face covering order. The entrepreneurs, James Zimmerer and Pasquale Carannante, filed the petition last Friday. Attorney Charles J. Muskin represented the pair seeking a temporary restraining order, a court directive to end the mask mandate.

Zimmerer and Carannante listed the defendants as Pittman, Anne Arundel County and Health Officer Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman.

The health officer was the main focus of the case. Kalyanaraman reinstated the face covering requirement earlier this month after the County Council voted not to renew the health order. The complaint questioned whether state law grants Kalyanaraman that power.

Lawyers Claire Amy Pierson and Mary Elizabeth Bearden of the Maryland attorney general's office defended Kalyanaraman. County government Attorney Philip Edward Culpepper represented Pittman and Anne Arundel.

The Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County heard the arguments. The case title was Pasquale Carannante, et al. vs. Steuart Pittman, Jr., et al. The case number was C-02-CV-22-000064.

Digital court documents do not identify the judge who presided over the case. Patch requested this information and will add their name when the court responds.

Overriding Mask Mandate Vote

Pittman restored an indoor mask mandate and a state of civil emergency on New Year's Eve. Those executive orders expired on Jan. 7. Neither action restricted business capacities or limited social gatherings.

The County Council could have extended the face covering requirement and the state of emergency with five votes. The motion fell one vote short. All four Democrats supported a continuation, and the three Republicans opposed it.

The health officer stepped in about two hours after the vote and resumed the mask mandate. Kalyanaraman issued a public safety order requiring residents older than 2 to wear face coverings in indoor public spaces and outdoor areas where distancing is not possible. This declaration will last until Jan. 31 or until he lifts the ruling, whichever is sooner.

Kalyanaraman's face covering order came as the omicron variant of coronavirus overtook Maryland. This surge led medical centers to initiate their emergency plans, called crisis standards of care, as they exceeded their capacities.

Hospitalizations and cases are starting to plateau from this highly contagious, but milder, variant. Kalyanaraman said he does not plan to extend the mask mandate beyond the end of the month as long as the numbers maintain their downward trend.

The death toll is the only metric that is not declining. Anne Arundel County saw a pandemic-high 39 COVID-19 deaths last week, the health officer said at a Tuesday press conference.

Debating Legality Of Mandate

Kalyanaraman, an appointed official, said Section 18-208 of the Maryland Code grants him the power to require masks. That law tasks health officers with protecting residents when they have "reason to believe that a disease that endangers public health exists within the county."

Health officials should then "report immediately to the appropriate county board of health; ... investigate the suspected disease; and act properly to prevent the spread of the disease." Similar duties exist "when a health officer is notified of an infectious or contagious disease within the county." In this case, officers must also give Maryland's secretary of health an update within 24 hours.

Opponents thought this law only applies to new diseases because it uses timely phrases like "report immediately," "is notified" and "within 24 hours." COVID-19 has been in the county for two years, so they believed the law did not protect Kalyanaraman's mask mandate.

The judge ruled against these challengers, however.

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