Two business owners filed suit Tuesday in Hopkins Circuit Court challenging the constitutionality of a smoking ban set to take effect Sunday.
The suits asks for an injunction to prevent the ban from being enforced until the legal questions it raises are settled.
The ban is similar to one enacted by the Madison County Board of Health that took effect in June 2007.
The suit challenges the interpretation of the Kentucky law, which the boards of health claim authorizes them to ban smoking in public places.
Under the Kentucky Constitution, such power is reserved to the elected bodies of cities and counties, the suit claims.
Paducah attorney Michael O. Walker, who filed the suit on behalf of James Haulk and Thomas E. Richardson, said he expects the case to reach the Kentucky Supreme Court.
If the Hopkins County challenge is upheld by the state’s highest court, similarly enacted bans in Madison, Scott and other counties could be overturned.
The Madison County ban has not been challenged in court.
The Hopkins County Board of Health last year examined Madison County’s smoking ban and the process used to enact it, Jim Rousey, director of the Madison County Health Department said this past August.
Scott County’s board of health also consulted with Madison County before acting to ban smoking in public places.
Rousey was not in his office Wednesday and unavailable for comment.
A message left Wednesday for Jack Morris, director of the Hopkins County Health Department, had not been returned by press time.
The litigants are supported by a group calling itself the Freedom Coalition, according to Hal Latham, a former Richmond resident who now lives in Hopkins County.
“I don’t smoke,” he said. “This is not a question of whether smoking should be banned in public places. It’s about how a smoking ban may be imposed and who has the power to impose one.”
The organization’s motto is “Education, Not Legislation,” he said.
Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@richmondregister.com or at 623-1669, Ext. 267.
Local News
Suit challenges constitutionality of smoking ban
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‘She wasn’t just a teacher’ : Lambert retires after 43 years at Berea
Scroll to the bottom of the story to read "Love for Lambert: Berea graduates share memories of their teacher," as well as a list of other Berea retirees this year.
Writer’s Note: Brenda Lambert is the reason I write articles today (Class of 2000).
Years ago, a little blonde-haired girl from Rockcastle County gathered her friends to “play school” in a 10-by-10 foot playhouse her father built.
Even at 12 years old, Brenda Lambert knew she wanted to be a teacher one day.
“I always felt like an old person trapped in a young person's body,” said Lambert, who is retiring after 43 years of service to Berea Community School. -
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Next weekend, the Special Olympics Kentucky State Summer Games return to Eastern Kentucky University campus. This is the 18th consecutive year EKU has hosted the event.
The games will be Friday through June 2. About 1,300 athletes will compete this year. -
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Jerry Wayne Edington, 34, of Berea Road, was charged Jan. 19 with second-degree assault after an altercation at the Blue Moon bar on East Irvine Street, according to a Richmond police report. -
Dump of the Day
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Paradise Cove open through Labor Day
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Dump of the Day
An old mattress, a car seat and other debris sit Friday afternoon on North Street between Fourth and Fifth Streets where it was first spotted Thursday. The “Dump of the Day” is a recurring series the Richmond Register publishes to highlight illegal trash piles and push local governments to cite perpetrators and get illegal dumps cleaned up. See Sunday’s Richmond Register to read a copy of the city’s ordinance related to trash pickup.
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Undefeated academic team brings pride to Madison Middle School
Madison Middle School 6th and 7th grade academic teams have been undefeated for the last two years.
The 8th grade team also has done well, having some students qualify to compete at the state level. -
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A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
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Man is indicted on additional sex charge involving teen in 1998
A man already accused of sex abuse in November 2011 has been indicted on a charge of first-degree rape involving a child in 1998.
Charles W. Peyton, 63, of East Irvine Street, was indicted Wednesday by a Madison grand jury. He used “forcible compulsion” to have sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old girl between March 1 and May 1 in 1998, according to the indictment. -
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
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