NEW YORK (VINnews/Sandy Eller) – Granting an emergency request from the Cuomo camp, a Manhattan appeals court judge has restored the 50 person maximum on all weddings held in New York State at least temporarily.
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A ruling issued on August 21st by Judge Denny Chin of the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is the latest chapter in the state’s ongoing wedding saga.
Two engaged couples from the Buffalo area sued the state on July 31st, alleging that Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 50 person limit on all non-essential gatherings violated their constitutionally protected religious rights because it banned weddings while allowing outdoor graduations, restaurant dining and the George Floyd protests, as reported by Fox40 (www.bit.ly/34reUIG).
District Court Judge Glenn Suddaby issued a preliminary injunction blocking the state order on August 7th, clearing the way for one of the couples to hold their wedding reception just 15 minutes later at the Arrowhead Golf Club in the Buffalo suburb of Akron. With 110 guests in attendance, the wedding was well under the less than 50 percent threshold for the venue’s official 438 person capacity.
CNN (www.cnn.it/3hkWfBG) reported that a motion filed by the state to stay the preliminary injunction was denied by Suddaby denied on August 19th. In his 28 page ruling, Suddaby noted that New York was allowing certain businesses to operate and gatherings to occur, albeit with certain restrictions in place, but was refusing to acknowledge that those same precautions would be taken at other gatherings.
The state escalated the matter to the Second Circuit court, with Judge Chin granting the request on Friday until the matter can be heard by a full panel of judges on August 25th. That decision effectively blocked the 175 person wedding of the second couple, Pamela Giglia and Joe Durolek, which was scheduled to take place at the Arrowhead Golf Club on August 22nd.
According to the New York Post (https://bit.ly/3j95gOC) Chin said that the two couples had waited too long to bring their case, filing their motion just days before the first wedding was scheduled to take place.
Giglia and Durolek have postponed their wedding, which New York State Health Commissioner Howard Zucker had dubbed a potential coronavirus “super-spreader.”
“Even if a venue promises to enforce social distancing protocols, and to assure that guests wear masks at all times when not seated at their tables, there are practical limits on a venue’s ability to fulfill such promises when hosting a large gathering such as that at issue here, where 175 friends and family will join together from various locations to mingle and celebrate,” said Zucker in a written statement.
Concerns about weddings spreading coronavirus are not unfounded. Just last week, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that 16 new cases were reported in Borough Park, all of which have been traced back to a recent wedding that exceeded the state’s 50 person limit. Responding to a question about the wedding at a press conference, the mayor said that 50 percent capacity attendance limitations that are in place in stores and restaurants can be substantially lower for weddings.
all the weddings are now in PROTEST and without masks – because ALL LIVES MATTER
I think that this should include protests too.
That’s why we Have a custom to brake a glass under the Chuppah, we show the authorities that it’s a “peaceful” demonstration and not a wedding, so they will allow unlimited people….
Another Obama judge.
Is Oscar Meyer now kosher. Are goyim reading vos is neias.? PLEASE fill me in
We learned nothing from Covid.
Weddings were supposed to be smaller and less expensive from now on.No more squeezing mechatanim for unaffordable 5 -hour multi thousand dollar shindigs.
I’ve already been invited to full blown weddings and in a few cases I know that money is tight.
Who cares ? Like no message was delivered by Hashem.
Instead of blowing fortunes , why not donate some to tzeddaka . Every Jews site runs ads for unfortunates R”L and so much can be funneled there. So many people can be helped with only a small percentage collected from mechatanim in total.
But no ! Full hockerei , every night another bothersome sheva brachos , more heart aches.
Covid will end b”eH when we stop with spilling blood money on extravagance.
Invite 500 people for cake and soda and keep 50 guests for the meal.
Excuse me ? Stinky garbage cans ? My nephew made a lively beautiful wedding at a mutual friend’s garden and it was an intimate lively affair. It was a full simcha affair , friends of chosson , kallah staggered in at intervals and it was emotional and beautiful. Apparently , you didn’t attend one. The cost savings were instead giiven to the coule for apt. rental and so on.Even a modest ualmist lavish affair is a waste of money and people ‘s time.
Agree 100 % , and some rabbonim spoke about this several months ago.
But they have to step up the pressure and if they’re e offered a kibud such as siddur kuddushin , they should refuse to attend , reject the kibbudim and politely tell the families why.
They need to take the lead. Especially that so many lost employment and business , it’s almost a crime to make large weddings , you don’t invite every Tom & Dick and truth be told _ they don’t even crave to be invited. If more people do it , less will be insulted at lack of invite.
The rabonnim said, no more than 250 people. Cuomo says no more than 50. A new chumra for all those who love to run after the latest chumra.
The same people who are so afraid of a virus that currently is very weak and has caused no deaths in the past 2 to 3 months do they get into a car and drive? Bear in mind people die and get maimed in accidents every day. Why the fear for a virus that has caused no new fatalaties over no fear of driving a car and possibly getting killed?
The media has brainwashed some people and sense has become not that common
Hm…I wonder….those weddings that took place in concentration camps, and under Stalinist rule….not exactly ‘batmpt’….let’s look at what those weddings created….
So, poor poor us…we might not be able to have Hollywood produced bashes….oh, how pitiful….what a terrible rachmones….only 50 poeple allowed!