- Joined
- Aug 29, 2018
The US government is allowed to detain you if it is legally permitted and the law is constitutional. We usually associate detainment with criminal activity. But detaining for criminal activity falls under the same category as compelling public interest. Just as society has a compelling interest to not see criminals roam free, the same goes for the diseased and US law allows for forcible detainment to enforce a quarantine. The US government supremacy power and control over interstate commerce also does in theory give it the power to close State borders if such closure serves a compelling national interest.
What the Federal government cannot do is enforce quarantines within the states themselves. In these situations the States have even broader authority and can even institute draconian measures that even the Federal Government is not permitted.
County health authorities have the power to detain you.
Hell, I can do it.