Written by EDMUNDO CARRILLO / JOURNAL STAFF WRITER 
Updated July 20, 2020 at 5:26 pm

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Hours after New Mexico restaurants and breweries won a ruling allowing them to temporarily open for in-person dining, the state Supreme Court jumped in and put those reopening plans on ice.

The Supreme Court granted the Governor’s Office request for an emergency stay of the ruling late Monday. It ordered the parties to file their arguments with the high court within the next week.

State District Judge Raymond L. Romero, of Carlsbad, had issued a restraining order earlier in the day temporarily barring Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and her administration from enforcing its ban on indoor dining at restaurants and breweries. In his order, Romero noted that the state had failed to respond to the request for the order filed by several New Mexico businesses, including Outlaw Meats, LLC, K-Bobs of Raton and Las Vegas, Trinity Hotel and Red River Brewing Company.

Upon learning of the ruling, the Governor’s Office rushed to the Supreme Court and asked for the emergency stay.

“Sustained indoor contact in an environment where face-coverings cannot be worn, such as at restaurants, is unsafe,” said Tripp Stelnicki, a spokesman for the governor. “A bad ruling by a judge doesn’t change that. New Mexico business operators should continue to abide by the state’s guidelines and restrictions; anything less is to risk the health and safety of employees, customers, their communities and indeed our entire state.”

Stelnicki said the danger of COVID-19 transmission has risen and continues to rise.

“New Mexico cannot afford to let up in its fight against this virus,” he added in the statement.

In his order, Judge Romero had said restaurants and breweries would be allowed to provide dine-in service, though their occupancy was capped at 50%. The Supreme Court’s order puts a hold on Romero’s ruling.

The New Mexico Restaurant Association and other eateries filed a lawsuit last week in the 5th Judicial District Court in Eddy County after Lujan Grisham once again banned indoor dining across the state amid a spike in COVID-19 cases.

“We are hopeful that our three branches of government will operate as designed and the Supreme Court will see that the Governor’s Order was arbitrary and will rule in favor of our clients whose livelihoods are in the balance, despite their previous exercise of Covid Safe Practices.,” Antonia Roybal-Mack, a lawyer representing the NMRA, told the Journal in a statement.

Source: "Judge temporarily blocks gov.’s ban on indoor dining"