Salavantis: Business violation enforcement largely up to local police

WILKES-BARRE — Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis has clarified where her office stands regarding violations of the state’s COVID-19 orders.

In short: It’s largely up to local police.

“Initially, the statutes cited by the Governor for violating his emergency orders are summary offenses,” Salavantis wrote in a statement released Tuesday afternoon. “The decision whether to issue summary citations is up to each police department which gets its direction from the government of their municipality. Summary citations are prosecuted at the Magisterial District Judges’ offices by the issuing officer, not the District Attorney’s Office.”

The statement comes after increasing numbers of businesses throughout Pennsylvania have said they will reopen despite Wolf’s orders, including Danko’s All American Fitness Center. The local chain announced Monday that it would be reopening locations in Plains Township and the Back Mountain even though Luzerne County is still in the “red” phase, meaning state officials believe the number of virus cases is still too high to permit safe re-opening.

Salavantis added that her office is encouraging law enforcement to seek the guidance from their municipalities’ respective solicitors in order to determine whether or not to pursue summary charges against businesses ignoring the order.

According to her, the DA’s office would only become directly involved after someone convicted of a summary offense files an appeal with the Court of Common Pleas.

“At that point, my office would review each citation on a case-by-case basis and decide whether to proceed or to exercise prosecutorial discretion and decline to prosecute,” she wrote. “As our office does not have a case before us, we cannot issue a blanket statement refusing to prosecute any and all alleged violations of the Governor’s orders.”

She did say that prosecution may be necessary to prosecute those whose actions involve “egregious violations that endanger others,” but she said that she thinks it is “difficult to imagine our community acting with such reckless disregard for public health.”

“We, as Luzerne County residents, have shown our commitment to protecting ourselves, our friends and our families using the recommended social distancing, personal protective equipment and enhanced hygiene recommended by experts,” she said.

Salavantis also warns businesses that the Wolf administration has tools to enforce the emergency order that the county DA’s offices do not have jurisdiction over, including actions such as “administrative suspension or revocation of professional licenses or lawsuits seeking injunctions.”