New Jersey police have been called out to deal with the state’s residents holding large gatherings and have even been forced to close down non-essential businesses despite a statewide lockdown being in place.
Over the past several weeks New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy had warned people not to hold large gatherings and for non-essential businesses in an effort to stop the spread of coronavirus.
However it appears the message is still not getting through with several violations occurring in the Garden State this week.
On Monday, Ocean County police were called to a toy shop, Toys4U, that was open despite not being classed as an essential business.
Officers found at least 50 people waiting outside the store, with none observing social distancing guidelines, while a store employee accepted orders at the door, reports NJ.com.
Police in New Jersey were called to this toy shop only to find at least 50 people inside with nobody respecting social distancing guidelines (file photo)
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy had banned social events including backyard parties to curb the COVID-19
None of the 10 workers inside were following social distancing. Just three were wearing masks, officials said.
The store should have closed on March 21st in line with the governor’s lockdown order.
Only essential businesses such as pharmacies and grocery stores are supposed to be open during the coronavirus pandemic.
Owner, Yossi Itzkowitz and manager, Tzvi Blau, 29, have been charged with violating the emergency orders.
New Jersey cops were also required to break up a large catered party in the backyard of a Lakewood house, which was being attended by adults and children.
The party was a formal event that even involved bouncy castle for children, a chef and two waiters, police stated.
Protesters gather at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing to show their displeasure with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s orders to keep people at home and businesses locked
Furious demonstrators gathered Wednesday at Michigan’s state Capitol, creating a massive traffic jam filled with honking cars and flag-waving protesters in defiance of the state’s stringent statewide stay-at-home orders – demanding that they are lifted
Israel Goldenberg, 23, from Monsey, New York, was charged with violating the emergency orders while Mendel Steiner, 27; Dina Endzweig, 26; Johnathan Schick, 31; Hindy Schick, 32; Ephraim Weiss, 31; and Chaya Weiss, 29, from Brooklyn were charged with violating the emergency orders and child neglect.
‘Law enforcement and medical professionals are on the frontlines of this battle to protect the citizens of New Jersey from the COVID-19 virus, and we cannot stress enough how important it is that each person follow the guidelines set forth in the Executive Order,’ Col. Patrick J. Callahan said in a statement.
‘Because lives are at stake, enforcement action will be taken without hesitation against those who are blatantly placing the lives of others at risk.
In Morris County, New Jersey, the owner of a tennis club, pictured, was charged after deciding to open his business against emergency orders
In Morris County, New Jersey, the owner of a tennis club was charged after deciding to open his business against emergency orders reports NJ.com.
Jeffrey Carter, 36, runs The Club at Mendham, along with Justin Kaplan, 21, Samuel Zenna, 20, Widyawati Pertusi, 47, and Deepak Kausal, 44, who are all residents of Mendham and Richard Lee, 57, of Long Valley, have been charged with violating emergency orders.
Carter was also charged with aiding and abetting violations of the emergency orders according to the state Attorney General’s Office.
Social distancing laws were flouted in Lansing, Michigan on Wednesday.
Hundreds of flag-waving, honking protesters drove past the state Capitol to show their displeasure with Governor Gretchen Whitmer´s orders to keep people at home and businesses locked during the coronavirus outbreak.
As snow fell, others got out of their vehicles and raised signs, one of which read, ‘Gov. Whitmer We Are Not Prisoners.’ Another said, ‘Michigander Against Gretchen’s Abuses.’
Hours later, Whitmer shot back, telling reporters that the rally put health at risk.
Thousands of demonstrators gathered at Michigan’s state Capitol building in Lansing on Wednesday to decry the state’s stay-at-home order
A passenger in a vehicle holds a sign during a protest at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan
Steve Polet holds a sign during a protest at the State Capitol in Lansing
The ‘Operation Gridlock’ protest was organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition. The ripples were widely felt: Traffic was barely moving for miles in some areas of Lansing.
‘This arbitrary blanket spread of shutting down businesses, about putting all of these workers out of business, is just a disaster. It´s an economic disaster for Michigan,’ coalition member Meshawn Maddock said. ‘And people are sick and tired of it.’
Whitmer, a Democrat, extended a stay-home order through April 30 and has shut down schools and businesses deemed non-essential. The governor acknowledged the pain but said the restrictions were necessary to stop the spread of the coronavirus, which causes a respiratory illness that has killed more than 1,900 Michigan residents and overwhelmed hospitals in the Detroit area.
Whitmer said she was ‘really disappointed’ to see protesters close together without masks.
‘I saw someone handing out candy to little kids barehanded,’ the governor told reporters. ‘People are flying the Confederate flag, and untold numbers who gassed up on the way here or grabbed a bite on the way home. We know that this rally endangered people. This kind of activity will put more people at risk and, sadly, it could prolong the amount of time we have to be in this posture.’
In Vancouver, British Columbia, protestors took to the streets unhappy at the city’s lockdown
Citizens also began to show unrest in Vancouver, British Columbia.
On Sunday, a group of protesters took to social media to describe measures of the COVID-19 pandemic as ‘unlawful orders and lockdowns.’
Dan Dicks, shared videos of himself and a small group of individuals marching in downtown Vancouver.
‘A number of Vancouverites aren’t drinking the Kool-Aid,’ Dicks continues. ‘They’re getting out and they’re getting together here to show the world that we’re not okay with unlawful orders, and quarantines, and lockdowns.’
