New York AG Letitia James appeals court ruling blocking people from being forced into quarantine, isolation

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Far-left Democratic New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed an appeal against a ruling by the state Supreme Court preventing the state government from forcing people into quarantine and isolation if they were exposed or infected with a contagious communicable disease, according to multiple reports.

New York's Rule 2.13, or "Isolation and Quarantine Procedures," was originally adopted in Feb. 2022, and enabled New York's commissioner of health to direct local health authorities to issue "isolation and/or quarantine orders" to "all such persons as the State Commissioner of Health shall determine appropriate" in order to control the potential spread of a "highly contagious communicable disease."

It also allowed any such isolation to be at home, "or such other residential or temporary housing location" determined appropriate by the commissioner.

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New York Attorney General Letitia James speaks during a press conference, Sept. 21, 2022, in New York.   (AP Photo/Brittainy Newman, File))

The rule was struck down in July 2022 by the state Supreme Court after a number of Republican state lawmakers, as well as personal freedom advocacy group Uniting NYS, filed a lawsuit challenging whether the rule was constitutional on the grounds that it violated separation of powers within New York's branches of government.

James' office, supported by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, immediately filed a notice to appeal following the ruling, and officially filed the full appeal months later on Mar. 13, the deadline to file. 

Following the appeal, the three Republican lawmakers who filed the initial lawsuit leading to the rule being struck down, state Sen. George Borrello, Assemblyman Chris Tague and now-Rep. Michael Lawler, blasted James over what they continued to argue was an unconstitutional action.

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul gives a speech on the Hudson River tunnel project at the West Side Yard on January 31, 2023, in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

"It is disappointing, but not a surprise, that state officials have chosen to pursue an appeal of Judge Ploetz’s ruling declaring Rule 2.13 unconstitutional and ‘null and void,’" Borrello said in a statement. "Their actions are an egregious waste of taxpayer dollars and an attempt to defend an indefensible policy." 

Lawler echoed that sentiment in his own statement, arguing the case had been "on solid ground" from the beginning, and that the "authoritarian-style" procedures were "would have been unimaginable a few short years ago."

"This unconstitutional power grab must be stopped in its tracks. If Rule 2.13 is allowed to stand, I guarantee that we will see more frightening intrusions on our civil liberties in the years ahead. I am calling on the Governor and the Attorney General to accept the court’s ruling and stop this waste of taxpayer resources on this futile fight," Tague added in a statement.

Then-Rep.-elect Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., chats with other newly elected member of Congress as they gather for the 118th Congress member-elect class photo on the House steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, November 15, 2022. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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It's unclear why James waited roughly eight months to file the appeal, and her office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.