CARMEL – Putnam County Sheriff Robert Langley, Jr. is not encouraging people to have large holiday gatherings in their homes, but rather is asking everyone “to use their own best judgment to remain safe.”
The sheriff’s comments come after the governor said people should limit the number of guests to 10 in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
“Would a gathering of 11 people be a greater danger than a gathering of 10, or would a gathering of nine people be substantially less dangerous,” he asked. “I’m not certain of what the correct number for safety would be and doubt if anyone does.”
Langley said there are several factors that would come into play when determining how many people to have in one’s home. “Are any of them at high risk? From where are they traveling? Is it more or less likely that they have been recently exposed to the disease? Are they regularly in your circle of contacts anyway? Is your home large enough that you can safely accommodate a larger number of guests? These are questions that I believe each family needs to answer themselves,” the sheriff said.
He criticized Governor Cuomo’s 10-person limit. “Rather than issuing orders, which are, at best, impossible to enforce, and, at worst, unconstitutional, the governor would better serve the people of New York if he encouraged our citizens to be cautious, use good judgment in weighing risk factors, protect the vulnerable, and enjoy our families and our great gathering traditions only in ways that are safe, until we can get back to normal,” Langley said.
