(The Center Square) – Dane County’s public health managers have agreed to drop the COVID-era tickets against a local dance studio over its Nutcracker production.
Public Health Madison & Dane County fined A Leap Above dance studio in Oregon, Wisc., $24,000 for 119 counts of violating local pandemic protocols for its 2020 Christmas time performance.
A Leap Above allowed parents to enter in shifts to videotape their kids’ portion of the Nutcracker Suite.
Studio owner Natalie Nemeckay said that procedure met PHMDC’s conditions, but the health department didn’t agree.
Nemeckay on Thursday said she’s happy the case is finally over.
“We are so thankful this whole chapter is over, and we can go back to helping young dancers pursue their passion for dance,” Nemeckay said.
The case went all the way to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty represented Nemeckay and her studio.
WILL’s Luke Berg said the decision to drop the fines is a major victory.
“Our client operated her business safely and responsibly during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet wrongfully faced fines by public health officials,” Berg added. “Dane County has since dropped this case, and WILL is proud of our efforts to protect our clients from these ridiculous financial penalties.”
WILL argued that PHMDC’s COVID order “violated the First Amendment and was unconstitutionally vague.”
The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled against that broader challenge in a narrow, 4-3 decision in the summer of 2022. The court ordered the case sent back to a lower court.
PHMDC last month decided to drop the case. Public health managers in Madison, however, have not said anything about that decision.
