San Mateo County has filed a lawsuit against Pacifica Beach Yoga for violating public health orders, the toughest action the country has taken against businesses that violate the safety rules in the pandemic.
The province alleges in the lawsuit that for many months Mr Tommy Antoon has openly refused to comply with various health orders and offered indoor, “mask-free” yoga classes, sometimes up to three times a day. All indoor gyms, fitness centers, and yoga studios should include areas covered by the state’s current residency orders imposed after COVID-19 cases threatened to flood state hospitals.
The complaint filed in the San Mateo County High Court also said Antoon did not require staff and customers to wear face masks and other safety protocols, and had requests from provincial staff for voluntary public health assignments. to follow, refused.
According to the lawsuit, on January 5, Antoon told a staff member in the province, “I will never lock up,” and he rejected the quotes he issued, saying he would never pay them.
During a court hearing on Thursday, Judge Danny Chou granted the province a request for a temporary restraint to force Pacifica Beach Yoga to stop immediately. A trial is set for Feb. 4, and the court will then decide whether the preliminary injunction is necessary.
“This business has left us no choice,” San Mateo County Councilor John Beiers said in a statement. “Our community rightly expects that when its state government draws up laws, those laws will be applied fairly and equitably to ensure that everyone plays by the same rules.”
Pacifica Beach Yoga did not respond to calls for comment. Entries on the studio’s Instagram page advertised classes as recently as January 16th. One report described the classes as ‘mask-free, fearless’.
According to the province’s Business Compliance Team, a group formed in November, 26 complaints have been filed against Pacifica Beach Yoga since October over health care violations. On January 5, the unit received 1,065 complaints against businesses, of which 72% were reduced. It issued 100 written warnings and 22 quotes, provincial officials told The Chronicle earlier.
So far, at least nine businesses have been fined as repeat offenders of stay-at-home orders since the county began keeping pace with the offenses in November. These include a bar, a beauty salon, a petrol station and several gyms. The Pacifica Yoga Studio was among them.
Fines against Pacifica Beach Yoga amount to $ 3,750, including a $ 250 quote in November for advertising ‘mask-free’ hot yoga, and another $ 500 fine in December for indoor activities.
“We have a simple and clear message here in San Mateo County: wear your damn mask,” said David Canepa, president of the Board of Supervisors, in a statement. “It’s not about you. It’s about everyone around you, including your friends, your loved ones and the people you do not even know who you are in contact with. ”
Shwanika Narayan is a staff writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter, Instagram: @shwanika