Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco reaffirmed his stance on not enforcing stringent stay-at-home orders, telling the Riverside County Board of Supervisors this week that he refuses to “make criminals out of business owners, single moms, and otherwise healthy individuals for exercising their constitutional rights.”
Eight weeks ago, officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) “participated in something never done before in our nation’s history,” Bianco began.
Government “ordered residents into their homes, closed their businesses, made them wear masks, forbid them from going to church, and eliminated constitutional freedoms put in place over 200 years ago,” he explained.
“In the name of a public health crisis, our civil liberties and constitutional protections were placed on hold,” he continued.
Officials, Bianco said, have asked a lot of residents over the last two months as part of a greater effort to flatten the curve and prevent hospitals from being completely overwhelmed by coronavirus patients.
Illinois teen stabs pregnant woman 70 times, knifes dog, sets home ablaze during Facebook Marketplace meetup
Trump admin finds California ban on notifying parents of gender transitions violated federal law
Texas killer asks victims’ families for forgiveness before becoming first execution of 2026
Georgia assistant principal accused of stealing nearly $1K in Walmart merchandise at self-checkout
NJ councilwoman condemns ‘ignorance’ of comparing ICE agents to Nazis during heated meeting
Trump taps Colin McDonald for newly-created role of assistant attorney general for fraud enforcement
Ilhan Omar demands impeachment of Noem amid DHS funding battle: ‘We must abolish ICE’
Video appears to show Alex Pretti spit at federal agents, violently damage SUV days before fatal CBP shooting
Ilhan Omar blames Trump’s rhetoric for surge in death threats, including spray attack: ‘So obsessed with me’
Rubio Defends Maduro Raid in Fiery Exchange with Rand Paul: ‘We Did Not Remove an Elected Official’
Breaking: New Video Reportedly Shows Alex Pretti Violently Attacking, Destroying Equipment on ICE Vehicle Days Before Shooting
Delusional Rocker Neil Young Gifts Music Catalog to Greenland, Claims It Will Help Them Cope With Trump
‘This Is Not a Game Show’: Marco Rubio Refuses to Go Along with Dem Senator’s Hearing Tactics
Did You Catch the Fatal Flaw in Obama’s Comments on the Pretti Death? It’s a Whopper That Even He Can’t Get Away With
Amazon Enacts Mass Layoffs as AI Rocks Tech Industry
“It worked,” he said, listing a series of statistics:
What isn’t being emphasized is that 2,000 of the 4,300 people who have tested positive have already recovered and returned to work. What that means is that out of two and a half million people in Riverside County, we have only 2,300 residents positive with this virus. Statistically, that is less than a tenth of one percent.
Forthcoming decisions from officials should be based on “facts and data, not protections and fear,” he continued, stressing that residents do not need to live in fear and noting that the risk remains low for people without serious medical conditions. However, he urged at-risk residents to remain at home.
Bianco said he did not enforce the stay-at-home order from the beginning, partly because he “trusted our residents’ ability to do the right thing without fear of being arrested” and emphasized that he continues to hold that position:
I knew they could be trusted to act as responsible adults, and I was correct. As we continue, I will reinforce my position. Not only do we not have the resources to enforce unreasonable orders, I refuse to make criminals out of business owners, single moms, and otherwise healthy individuals for exercising their constitutional rights. I believe Riverside County residents are responsible enough to proceed cautiously.
Illinois teen stabs pregnant woman 70 times, knifes dog, sets home ablaze during Facebook Marketplace meetup
Trump admin finds California ban on notifying parents of gender transitions violated federal law
Texas killer asks victims’ families for forgiveness before becoming first execution of 2026
Georgia assistant principal accused of stealing nearly $1K in Walmart merchandise at self-checkout
NJ councilwoman condemns ‘ignorance’ of comparing ICE agents to Nazis during heated meeting
Trump taps Colin McDonald for newly-created role of assistant attorney general for fraud enforcement
Ilhan Omar demands impeachment of Noem amid DHS funding battle: ‘We must abolish ICE’
Video appears to show Alex Pretti spit at federal agents, violently damage SUV days before fatal CBP shooting
Ilhan Omar blames Trump’s rhetoric for surge in death threats, including spray attack: ‘So obsessed with me’
Rubio Defends Maduro Raid in Fiery Exchange with Rand Paul: ‘We Did Not Remove an Elected Official’
Breaking: New Video Reportedly Shows Alex Pretti Violently Attacking, Destroying Equipment on ICE Vehicle Days Before Shooting
Delusional Rocker Neil Young Gifts Music Catalog to Greenland, Claims It Will Help Them Cope With Trump
‘This Is Not a Game Show’: Marco Rubio Refuses to Go Along with Dem Senator’s Hearing Tactics
Did You Catch the Fatal Flaw in Obama’s Comments on the Pretti Death? It’s a Whopper That Even He Can’t Get Away With
Amazon Enacts Mass Layoffs as AI Rocks Tech Industry
The original projections and fears that caused orders to be put into place in the first place, he added, have been “proven wrong.”
“There cannot be a new normal,” he warned, citing the country’s “fundamental freedoms of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
“Any new normal is a direct attack on the basic rights, which set us apart and make us the greatest country in the world,” he added.
On Tuesday, Gov. Newsom warned that, despite the state gradually entering into the next phase of economic recovery, California will not return to normal until a vaccine is developed and available.
“We’re not going back to normal. It’s a new normal with adaptations and modifications, until we get to immunity and a vaccine,” he said during Tuesday’s press briefing — something some experts caution may never come to fruition.
Story cited here.
