A nurse who returned to America after working with Ebola patients that told officials she would defy any quarantine has been ordered by a court to stay at least three feet away from any other person.
The ruling will allow Kaci Hickox to continue to go outside or even ride her bike but will ban her from public transportation and public locations like movie theatres or shopping centers.
“This decision has critical implications for {Hickox’s} freedom, as guaranteed by the U.S. and Maine Constitutions, as well as the public’s right to be protected from the potential severe harm posed by transmission of this devastating disease,” Judge Charles LaVerdiere wrote in the two-page decision.
Hickox had been taking interviews with national media outlets to say she would resist any attempts to quarantine her because she didn’t feel the government had the right to “force” anything on her.
The move into court came after repeated attempts to negotiate quarantine with Hickox broke down. Maine officials said she would agree to something and then back out hours later.