In an unusual federal court ruling Aug. 23, District Court Judge David C. Nye ordered that the Health Freedom Defense Fund pay the City of Hailey for its attorneys fees incurred in defending the city’s COVID-19 mask mandate put in place during the pandemic.
The Health Freedom Defense Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit which says it seeks to protect and advance health freedom, educate Americans on informed consent, advocate for human rights and bodily autonomy for all people, and legally challenge unethical mandates, laws, and policies when necessary. It was founded by Leslie Manookian, a Valley resident historically at the center of the local vaccine-safety debate.
Hailey had hired Deborah Ferguson of Ferguson Durham who successfully defended the civil rights challenge and secured the Attorney Fees Order. The suit was dismissed with prejudice in March of this year, when the court found the challenge had not “alleged plausible legal claims.” Specifically, the court upheld local government authority to enact public health orders, including those more stringent than public mask mandates.
The attorney fees awarded are in the amount of $29,650.
“Attorney fees are very rarely awarded to prevailing state and local governments as defendants in civil rights cases. Successful plaintiffs, on the other hand, are entitled to their fees when they win against the government. To award a government fees, a court must find that the suit against it was frivolous, unreasonable or without foundation. Judge Nye found these exceptional circumstances existed in the case, so the taxpayers of Hailey will not be responsible for the city’s legal bill,” Ferguson said.
Source: Health Freedom Defense Fund, et al. v. City of Hailey, Martha Burke, Mayor, Case No. 1:21-cv-00389-DCN, United States District Court, District of Idaho, Order dated Aug. 23, 2022
