Mass Disaster, Quarantines and Courtroom Respirators Part of NY ‘Doomsday’ Legal Manual

What laws authorize mass evacuations in the event of a terrorist attack? How should courts deal with medical shortages during a biological or chemical disaster? When should lawyers and judges don respirators to avoid contagious diseases?

Those are among the questions addressed in a new “doomsday legal manual” published this month by the New York court system and the state bar association, the New York Times reports.

The story says the manual “provides a catalog of potential terrorism nightmares” and the steps that may be taken in response. “Quarantines,” the Times writes. “The closing of businesses. Mass evacuations. Warrantless searches of homes. The slaughter of infected animals and the seizing of property. When laws can be suspended and whether infectious people can be isolated against their will or subjected to mandatory treatment. It is all there, in dry legalese, in the manual.”

The document refers to stockpiled gloves and respirators “already available at many courthouses” and says they may be needed during an outbreak of contagious disease. It also lists other alternatives, such as separating an infected individual who communicates with the court on live video.

The actual name of the document (PDF) is the New York State Public Health Legal Manual.