Maryland man sentenced to 1 yr in jail for holding massive events, violating state’s Covid-19 guidelines

Shawn Marshall Myers, 42, was arrested after holding the events in late March. Maryland’s Covid-19 social distancing guidelines banned gatherings of greater than 10 folks, in accordance with the workplace of Gov. Larry Hogan.

Myers was convicted Friday of two counts of failure to adjust to an emergency order and can serve his one-year sentence on the Charles County Detention Middle, the state’s legal professional’s workplace mentioned in a press launch.

Myers held a second social gathering with greater than 50 folks solely 5 days later, although, which he refused to finish, in accordance with prosecutors.

“Officers instructed Myers to disband the social gathering, however once more he was argumentative claiming he and his visitors had the correct to congregate,” the discharge acknowledged. “Past being argumentative, Myers directed his visitors to remain in defiance of Governor Hogan’s Orders and the officers’ lawful orders to disband the social gathering.”

Myers was taken into custody after officers had been unable to acquire his cooperation, prosecutors mentioned.

District Courtroom Choose W. Louis Hennessy additionally sentenced Myers to 3 years of unsupervised probation upon his launch and ordered him to pay a $5,000 superb, in accordance with the discharge.

CNN has additionally reached out to the Charles County Well being Division on whether or not any Covid-19 circumstances within the county will be traced to the gatherings that Myers hosted.