From Friday's unanimous decision by the North Carolina Supreme Court in Kinsley v. Ace Speedway Racing, Ltd., written by Justice Richard Dietz:
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency and issued an executive order affecting outdoor venues such as stadiums, concert arenas, and racetracks. The executive order permitted these venues to stay open but limited attendance to only twenty-five people, regardless of the venue's size.
Robert Turner, who operated a racetrack in Alamance County known as Ace Speedway, spoke out against these restrictions and told the public that his racetrack would remain open for all attendees. This led to the series of events at issue in this lawsuit….
[T]he claims at issue allege that Governor Cooper took a series of "unusual steps" to single out and shut down Ace Speedway—first by pressuring the local sheriff to arrest Turner and, when the sheriff refused, ordering public health officials to shut down Ace Speedway as a health hazard. The claims also allege that Governor Cooper took these actions not because there was an actual health hazard at the racetrack, but to punish Turner for speaking out, and that health officials did not take similar actions against other large outdoor venues whose owners did not openly criticize the Governor.
We emphasize that these allegations remain unproven. After all, the case has barely begun. Still, as explained below, these allegations assert colorable claims under the North Carolina Constitution for which there is no alternative remedy. As a result, at this stage of the case, the trial court properly denied the State's motion to dismiss….
We begin with Ace Speedway's claim that the State deprived the speedway and its owners of their inalienable right to earn a living guaranteed by the provision of Article I, Section 1 of the North Carolina Constitution known as the "Fruits of Their Labor Clause."
Article I, Section 1 provides as follows: "We hold it to be self-evident that all persons are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor, and the pursuit of happiness."
