Mayfield, Ky.–Graves County Sheriff Jon Hayden has announced that sheriff’s deputies from his department will not be enforcing the state of Kentucky’s mandate requiring facial coverings.
In a press release, Hayden said, “After consultation with legal counsel, it has been decided that the Graves County Sheriff’s Office WILL NOT be enforcing this order. We have no legal authority to do so, as this has not been passed into law in our state.”
Hayden said in researching the law, the only agency that would have any jurisdiction to enforce such an order would be the local health department.
“Please do not call our office or dispatch at the Kentucky State Police Post as we have no legal authority or jurisdiction to respond to any incident if the only issue being reported is if someone isn’t wearing a facial covering”, he said. “The local health department by law is the only agency that would have any authority in this matter.”