MENDOCINO Co., 3/19/20 — Mendocino County Sheriff Matt Kendall issued a statement yesterday concerning the enforcement of of the new shelter-in-place order which Public Health Officer Noemi Doohan issued yesterday, and which went into effect last night. With the confirmation of at least one case of the coronavirus disease, (COVID-19) yesterday, Mendocino County is now observing extremely strict isolation and social distancing measures to try to curtail the spread of the virus. (Read the order)
These measures are deemed essential to protect vulnerable populations, and to ensure that hospitals do not become overcrowded with people needing intensive care. The order went into effect yesterday at 10 p.m., and is quite detailed in terms of defining what is and isn’t an essential service.
Sheriff Kendall explained in his statement that the spirit of the law will be factored in and that very often enforcement of the order will consist of education. In the statement he appears to stress that the order is in place for the protection of the public health, and not as a draconian power grab — an opinion that has been voiced more than once in our freedom loving corner of the world.
Read the full statement from Kendall below:
DATE: “March 18, 2020”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Incident Number:
2020
Crime/Incident:
COVID-19 : Health Officer Orders
Location:
Mendocino County
Date of Incident:
03-19-2020
Time:
9:00 PM
Victim(s):
N/A
Suspect(s):
N/A
Written By:
Sheriff Matthew C. Kendall
Synopsis:
With the recent orders from the Mendocino County Health Officer, I realize there will be several questions and concerns regarding enforcement of these orders.
The Sheriff’s Office remains dedicated to providing the highest level of service to the public.
The Mendocino County Health Officer has implemented these orders to comply with the directions and guidelines being distributed by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Mendocino County Department of Public Health.
As I have said before, enforcement is more often than not education.
Our county has historically done the right thing for our families, neighbors and persons in our communities.
We have been through a lot in the past few years with several disasters and rapidly evolving situations. We have come out of these disasters stronger than before. Much of this is due to the resilient nature of our communities and our willingness to help our neighbors.
Enforcement of these orders will be completed by law enforcement officers however discretion will allow for the spirit of the law to be factored in every contact.
I am encouraging all persons to review the Mendocino County Health Officer’s Orders in their entirety. Many questions and concerns will be answered upon reading these orders.
The full content of the issued orders can be found at the following hyperlink: https://www.mendocinocounty.org/community/novel-coronavirus
Thank you,
Sheriff Matthew C. Kendall
Approved by:
Sheriff Matthew C. Kendall
Spirit of the law? These orders are clear stay in your abode period. If u need food, ask for home delivery. No beach parties. No parties. Full stop. We hope the sheriff follows the letter of the law And fines those who want to flaunt it.
Thank you to our mayor, Will Lee, and Sheriff Kendall for their positive leadership through these very difficult times. Will is right about our town pulling together at difficult times over the years. That is why I have always been proud to be a part of our community. You can reach out to a neighbor, without any contact, by picking something up for them when going to the store and leave it on their porch.