Raoul seeks to move Bailey lawsuit challenging stay-at-home order to federal court

Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office has sought to move a legal challenge to Gov. JB Pritzker’s stay-at-home order to a federal court.

The Thursday filing by Raoul’s office to move the lawsuit by Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, says the change is necessary because the suit claims the order affects his rights granted by the U.S. Constitution, thereby making it a federal matter.

“Because Bailey’s action seeks redress for alleged deprivation of at least four rights secured by the United States Constitution… the governor removes the state court action to this court,” the filing said.

The lawsuit, which seeks to invalidate Pritzker’s stay-at-home order, had been scheduled to be heard Friday before the same Clay County judge who previously ruled in favor of Bailey’s legal challenge against the order. The original language of Bailey’s suit meant that the ruling only allowed him not to follow the stay-at-home order.

Bailey’s attorney, Thomas DeVore, said in a statement that Thursday’s filing was “seemingly frivolous and sounds of bad faith.” He promised to challenge the filing and return the case to circuit court.

“The attorney general and the governor have taken Mr. Bailey’s complaint and contrived federal questions where no such questions remotely exist,” DeVore said. “We trust the federal court will remand this matter back to the Circuit Court of this state where it belongs.”

Pritzker deferred comment on the matter to Raoul’s office.

A spokesperson for Raoul said they will “continue to defend the governor’s constitutional and statutory right to act to protect the health and safety of all Illinois residents.”

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