Education, not arrests, to be focus when Quincy Police Department receives mask complaints

QUINCY — You won’t be taken away in handcuffs if you choose to defy Gov. JB Pritzker’s order to wear a mask indoors.

A mask mandate inside buildings begins Monday across Illinois. Quincy Police Chief Rob Copley said Friday education will the focus of his staff when complaints are lodged by the public about masks not being worn.

“This is an order from the governor and nothing that’s been passed into law by the legislature,” Copley said. “Education is what we’re going to do. If we receive complaints, we will contact the business and educate them. If we need to talk to patrons, we will educate them.

“But it will not be enforcement by way of arrest.”

Copley said he spoke with Quincy Mayor Mike Troup and Jerrod Welch, public health administrator with the Adams County Health Department, after Thursday’s announcement. He says the city plans to handle Pritzker’s latest edict the same way it handled the mask mandate when businesses reopened last year.

“We will contact the owner of a business and say, ‘Hey, we got this complaint. This is the current guidance from the governor. By not following it, you may lose some business, and some people have called who aren’t happy. We encourage you to follow the policy,’” Copley said.

“If the owner then replies (negatively), we walk off. It’s not a confrontation. We’re just trying to help everybody do the best they can.”

Pritzker has taken an aggressive approach to slow the spread of the coronavirus, which has spiked in Illinois in recent weeks. Illinois reported a seven-day average of 3,547 cases on Wednesday, more than three times the average cases reported one month ago.

The AARP reports Hawaii, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington also require most people to wear masks in indoor public places.

Pritzker also announced a vaccine requirement for all P-12 teachers and staff, all higher education personnel, all higher education students and health care workers beginning Sept. 5. People in those settings who are not vaccinated must be tested for COVID-19 at least once a week.

Quincy Superintendent Roy Webb told Muddy River News on Thursday he has not yet learned the state’s plan to track the number of vaccinated teachers or whether unvaccinated teachers have received a weekly COVID test.

“It’s very simple to say, ‘We’re going to do this and this,’” Webb said. “The logistics of this are a little more cumbersome.”

The New York Times reported earlier this week Gov. Philip Murphy of New Jersey said all teachers in that state must be vaccinated or submit to weekly testing. California and Hawaii have similar mandates. 

Other mayors across the state have said they don’t plan to follow the indoor mask mandate.

East Peoria mayor John Kahl wrote Thursday on his Facebook page that his city will not enforce the latest round of restrictions “being imposed on our citizens and the members of our business community by the governor.” 

“Our action is about the residents of our community and their ability to decide the best course of action for their health and their livelihoods,” Kahl wrote. “We encourage everyone to remain respectful of each other and to be respectful of any policies that members of our business community may choose to implement.”

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot imposed a mandate last week that people must wear a mask while indoors in the city of Chicago as of Aug. 20. 

However, Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson told Journal & Topics on Aug. 18, “We’re not doing that, folks. … If people feel comfortable wearing masks, we encourage you to wear it. If that makes you feel more comfortable, we want you to wear it. You should wear it.”

Johnson was pictured with his thumb up while he held a mask over a trash can.

Quincy Mayor Mike Troup was not available for comment Friday afternoon.

The mask mandate has been a hot topic among Illinois schools for the past month. Any school district electing to defy the governor’s mask mandate was threatened by the Illinois State Board of Education with several consequences, such as losing its recognition status and being banned from participating in Illinois High School Association activities.

Copley doesn’t foresee similar consequences being instituted for businesses and people who don’t comply.

“I’d be surprised if we do,” he said. “If we do, that’ll be a discussion with the mayor and the state’s attorney.”

Copley said any discussions last year with businesses that were not complying with the statewide mask mandate went well.

“In no way am I going to say we had 100 percent compliance or anything like that,” he said.

He noted the Illinois State Police asked for any complaints to be forwarded to them if a problem persisted last fall.

“I haven’t heard anything from the state police yet, but my guess is it will be similar,” Copley said.

Copley said municipal facilities, such as City Hall and the Quincy Police Department, will require visitors to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status.

“You’ll see (employees) wearing masks when they’re dealing with the public or in common areas,” he said. “They won’t be if they’re in a private office and nobody else is there.”