'Haven't read it, I'm not worried about it, and we will win it,' Gov. Beshear said about NKY based travel restriction lawsuit

Cincinnati Enquirer

“I want to make sure nobody is cut off” of utilities, says Gov. Andy Beshear during his daily coronavirus update to the state from the state capitol. He says this is not the time to kick people off or into the streets. He says the “bottom line” doesn’t matter right now. "It's going to take us being real good people." March 21, 2020

Gov. Andy Beshear isn't worried about the federal lawsuit a Campbell County woman filed Thursday against him which claims his travel restriction lawsuit is unconstitutional.

On Thursday, a Campbell County resident filed a federal lawsuit in Covington against Beshear and Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron over the Monday travel ban order.

"I haven't read it, I'm not worried about it, and we will win it," Beshear said Friday at a press conference.

The lawsuit filed by Allison S. Alessandro challenges the order is an unconstitutional infringement on the rights of Kentuckians to travel outside of the state, which is "a fundamental right firmly embedded in this nation’s jurisprudence."

The lawsuit states it included Cameron because of the attorney general saying two weeks ago that his office would pursue and prosecute persons suspected of violating the governor's executive orders.

Alessandro "regularly travels to Ohio and visits friends and family in Ohio," according to the lawsuit. It adds that Beshear's order has made her unable to travel to Ohio "for the purpose of associating at a safe distance with her friends and family who reside there" and "to enjoy Ohio’s parks."

The lawsuit adds that the plaintiff now fears traveling to Ohio "due to uncertainty over whether she will be detained or otherwise punished" as a result of the order.

The Courier Journal contributed to this report.

Julia is the Northern Kentucky government reporter through the Report For America program. Anonymous donors pledged to cover the local donor portion of her grant-funded position with The Enquirer. If you want to support Julia's work, you can donate to her Report For America position at this website or email her editor Carl Weiser at cweiser@cincinna.gannett.com to find out how you can help fund her work.

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