Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg plans for Louisville Metro Police to begin enforcing a decades-old ordinance that makes wearing face coverings in public illegal in an attempt to curb gun violence, he said in a news conference Tuesday.
Greenberg started discussing the idea of leveraging the ordinance with LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey after a shooting took place in the Pleasure Ridge Park High School parking lot during a football game Sunday night. The suspects in the shooting were wearing “surgical masks and other face coverings to conceal their identities,” Greenberg said.
“This is not an isolated incident. LMPD officers see time and time again when assailants, trigger-pullers, are wearing masks to conceal their identities,” Greenberg said.
What is the mask ordinance Mayor Greenberg is considering enforcing?
Ordinance 130.01 was passed in 1983 and hasn’t been enforced by LMPD since the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, said Kevin Trager, press secretary for the mayor’s office.
The ordinance prohibits people from wearing “any mask, device or hood whereby any portion of the face is so hidden or covered as to conceal the identity of the wearer” while in public.
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Trager noted the ordinance doesn’t carve out an exemption for people wearing masks for medical reasons.
What is exempt under Louisville’s mask ordinance?
As the ordinance currently stands, it allows the following exemptions:
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Any person under 16 years of age.
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Any person wearing traditional holiday costumes in season.
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Any person using masks in theatrical productions, including use in Mardi Gras celebrations and masquerade balls.
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Any person lawfully engaged in trades or employment or in sporting activity where a mask or facial covering is worn for the purpose of ensuring the physical safety of the wearer or because of the nature of the occupation, trade or professional or sporting activity.
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Any person wearing a gas mask in drills, exercises or emergencies.
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Any person engaging in an activity such that the wearing of the mask is protected by the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky or the United States Constitution.
Will any amendments be made to the mask ordinance?
Greenberg said the rules need to be amended to account for people who wear masks in public to defend against COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses. Greenberg will use the next week to gather input from Metro Council and community members on how to design the ordinance in a way that protects public and improves public safety, Trager said.
“We believe there need to be some amendments to this ordinance that we’ll be talking about with our colleagues on Metro Council about immediately,” Greenberg said.
All amendments would need to be approved by Louisville Metro Council.
What is the penalty for violating the mask ordinance?
People who violate the ordinance can be punished with a fine of up to $100 or imprisonment not to exceed 50 days, or both, according to the current rules.
Why does Mayor Greenberg want to enforce the mask ordinance?
Greenberg said Tuesday that gun violence is a “public health emergency that we must deal with.”
Some perpetrators of gun violence have used the increased prevalence of masking in public as a loophole to make getting away with crimes easier, Greenberg said. The masking ordinance gives law enforcement another tool to loosen the grip gun violence has on communities across Louisville, he said.
“There are tools that we have that we can use to reduce the amount of gun violence. It is critically important that we take every action to implement them,” Greenberg said.
This story may update.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville mask ordinance: What is it, who is exempt, upcoming changes
