On June 4, Gretchen Whitmer posted on the Michigan Governor’s Facebook page a photo of herself violating state law.

The photo captured Gov. Whitmer walking in a crowd at a George Floyd demonstration, not practicing the social distancing that was imposed on residents by her own executive order requiring six-feet of separation from others when in public.

Thousands of other Michigan residents have been ticketed for such violations, which can bring fines of up to $1,000.

There have been no reports that the governor was ticketed for the violation, which she admitted to at a press conference.

The event raises questions about how social distancing violations were handled during demonstrations protesting Whitmer’s coronavirus epidemic lockdown orders in April. The reactions from Whitmer and some other Democratic officials were very different then.

In Royal Oak, City Commissioner Kim Gibbs attended an anti-lockdown protest in Lansing and didn’t wear a face mask or practice social distancing.

Royal Oak Mayor Michael Fournier, a Democrat, asked Gibbs, a Republican to resign.

In a scathing email, Fournier told Gibbs that practicing social distancing was a matter of life and death, according to the Detroit Free Press.

“From what I see you broke the law and willfully violated social distancing measures putting our families and neighbors at risk,” Fournier wrote in an email, according to the Detroit Free Press. “Your actions will prolong quarantine and add to everyone’s economic hardships. Your comments to the press are beyond ignorant and show zero empathy for those on the front lines fighting this virus and those who have succumb to it. None of your spin-doctors will save you from your irresponsible actions and words. I will not be responding to anymore of your nonsense. This is about life and death. ... Your potentially unlawful and reckless actions have put more of our residents at risk of death."

The Royal Oak City Commission censured Gibbs by a 5-2 vote and a resolution asked that she immediately resign, according to the Detroit Free Press.

On April 2, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Robert Gordon said social distancing is “essential to saving lives.”

Gordon added, “A civil penalty and potential licensing actions send a strong message to Michiganders that social distancing is essential to saving lives.”

Whitmer acknowledged violating her own executive order.

“We couldn't always observe six feet apart but we were wearing masks the whole time," Whitmer said during a June 5 press conference. "We never shook hands, didn't high five or hug the way that we usually greet on and other but I thought that it was an important moment to show my support and show a unified leadership out of the executive office of the governor."

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled 7-0 on June 5 in favor of Owosso barber Karl Manke who had defied Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order shutdown and kept his business open.

The Court of Appeals now has to reconsider the case. Manke has no judicial impediment to continuing to stay open. The case will likely become moot once barbers are allowed to open on June 15.

In effect, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that two Court of Appeals judges Amy Krause and Stephen Borrello, both appointed by former Gov. Jennifer Granholm, violated court procedure. The violation occurred when the Court of Appeals reversed a trial court decision not to shutdown Manke by a 2-1 vote. However, the law requires the Court of Appeals needed the vote to be unanimous. Judge Brock Swartzle, appointed by former Gov. Rick Snyder, was the dissenting vote on the Court of Appeals.

Michigan Supreme Court Justice David Viviano said in an extraordinary rebuke in a concurring opinion, "It is incumbent on the courts to ensure decisions are made according to the rule of law, not hysteria."

Viviano continued: "One hopes that this great principle—essential to any free society, including ours—will not itself become yet another casualty of COVID-19."