Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kelly Ellerbe is recusing herself from a legal battle between Gov. Brian Kemp and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms over how to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.
She was set to hold the first hearing in the matter at 11 a.m. today, but the proceeding is now canceled, according to the Georgia Attorney General’s Office. No other details were released.
Kemp’s lawsuit accuses Bottoms of violating his executive orders by banning gatherings of more than 10 people on city property and requiring people to wear masks in Atlanta.
Kemp, who has encouraged but not mandated masks in Georgia and who has restricted gatherings of more than 50 people, says cities and counties are barred from enforcing rules that are more or less restrictive than his own. Saying Bottoms has sown confusion among Georgians, Kemp is asking the judge to suspend the mayor’s executive orders and prevent her from “issuing press releases, or making statements to the press, that she has the authority to impose more or less restrictive measures” than him.
Cox Media Group
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