Larry Hogan, Md. gov.: Penalties for violating stay-at-home order are there to ensure compliance

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Tuesday said the stiff penalties residents face if they violate the state’s stay-at-home order are meant to ensure compliance and that there have been just two arrests thus far for people who flouted social distancing rules.

“A lot of it is just to ensure compliance — you have to have some kind of penalty to associate it with an order,” Mr. Hogan said on CNN’s “New Day.”

He said state and local law enforcement have done about 5,000 “compliance checks” to disperse crowds and that there have only been two arrests.

Earlier this month, Mr. Hogan had banned gatherings of more than 10 people, which is in line with federal guidance on crowds in an effort to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.

The governor’s 10-person announcement came just days after he had banned gatherings of more than 50 people.

“Only twice has it resulted in arrests and in both cases there [were] extenuating circumstances where they just refused to comply,” he said. “And so two people have been arrested. … We’re serious about making sure that we keep people safe.”

One of those cases was a Charles County man who was arrested after law enforcement found about 60 people gathering near a bonfire at his home. He refused to disperse the crowd after complying a week earlier, according to the sheriff’s office.

Mr. Hogan on Monday announced a strict stay-at-home order where Maryland residents cannot leave their homes except in extremely limited circumstances, such as buying essential goods or seeking urgent medical care.

Violators could face a fine of up to $5,000 and/or up to a year in jail.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser followed later in the day with announcements of similar stay-at-home orders.

In Virginia, the punishment could be a fine of up to $2,500 and/or a year in jail, and in the District, violators could be subject to a fine of up to $5,000 and/or up to three months in jail.