SACRAMENTO, Calif. — While many local businesses have signs on their doors telling customers they're closed, Sean Covell is displaying the Bill of Rights outside of his Fitness System gym in Land Park.
Covell said that three of his Fitness System locations — in Sacramento, Lodi and West Sacramento — will open at midnight on May 1, one day before Sacramento and Yolo County's stay-at-home orders are set to expire. However, opening his facility in San Joaquin County would in defiance of the current health order issued to stay at home. There is no current end date for San Joaquin County's stay-at-home order.
In a three-page letter posted on the gym's Land Park doors, website and Instagram account, Covell says that the coronavirus pandemic has led to people losing their constitutional rights.
"The last few months have undoubtedly been some of the hardest in all of our lives," Covell wrote. "We have essentially been under house arrest, individuals and businesses have seen the trampling of their constitutional rights, people have been psychologically terrorized by the news, and politicians have been dispensing misleading information, half-truths and headlines intended to cause panic."
ABC10 reached out to Covell via email but was redirected to his attorney, Brian Chavez-Ochoa, after being told "Sean has made his comments public to the media. He cannot state the case any more clearly."
Chavez-Ochoa said that he's encouraged by that more businesses are reopening, but that they are prepared to file suit in federal court if their ability to work — and workout — continues to be restricted.
"If need be, and if Sean is faced with arrest, then we will seek redress in the United States District Court," Chavez-Ocha said. "We will seek damages and injunctive relief as well."
Sacramento county officials say the guidelines of the current stay-at-home order are clear: No gyms are allowed to open until at least 11:59 p.m. on May 1. In April, law enforcement agencies throughout Sacramento County started enforcing stay-at-home orders with penalties ranging anywhere from $50 to a $1,000 in fines and even up to six months in jail.
Sacramento Police Officer Karl Chan says the department's stance on enforcing violations will remain until the order expires on Friday night.
Many Sacramento-area business owners have pivoted to digital in recent weeks as brick and mortar gyms remain closed. There's no timetable for when fitness spaces will be able to reopen and there are no details on what that could look like for boutiques like yoga or indoor cycling.
Follow the conversation with Lina Washington on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can e-mail Lina at LWashington@abc10.com.
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