Judge Wohlfeil confirms his ruling encompasses all restaurants in San Diego County

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – All San Diego County restaurants and businesses with restaurant service are exempted from enforcement of California’s regional COVID-19 stay-at-home order, a judge said Thursday.

San Diego Superior Court Judge Joel R. Wohlfeil granted a preliminary injunction Wednesday that allowed a pair of San Diego strip clubs — Cheetahs Gentlemen’s Club and Pacers Showgirls International — to remain open amid COVID-19 restrictions, as well as “San Diego County businesses with restaurant service … subject to protocols that are no greater than is essential to further Defendants response to control the spread of COVID.”

Wohlfeil’s ruling prompted the county to seek an emergency hearing Thursday afternoon for clarification, though officials issued a statement Wednesday night indicating the county was suspending enforcement against restaurants and live entertainment establishments.

At Thursday’s hearing, Wohlfeil said, “The court’s intention is that all businesses which provide restaurant service, meaning all restaurants in the county of San Diego, are encompassed within the scope of the court’s order.”

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Among the local leaders praising the ruling were Sen. Brian Jones, R- Santee, who said, “Businesses with restaurant service are essential to our communities. Thank you to Judge Wohlfeil for acknowledging these shutdown orders are not grounded in evidence and allowing restaurants to reopen.”

County Supervisor Jim Desmond, who has long advocated for businesses to be allowed to reopen, called it “a victory for the working people in San Diego County.”

The ruling originated from a lawsuit filed by Cheetahs and Pacers to stay open amid county public health restrictions. Wohlfeil issued a temporary restraining order in the clubs’ favor last month.

Since then, a regional stay-at-home order prohibiting both indoor and outdoor dining went into effect, limiting restaurants to takeout, pickup or delivery.

Wohlfeil wrote in his nine-page ruling that the state of California and San Diego County had not provided adequate evidence tying the spread of COVID-19 or lack of intensive care unit bed capacity to live adult entertainment or businesses with restaurant service.

Attorney Jason Sacuzzo, who represents Pacers, argued Wednesday that there hasn’t been a single case of COVID-19 transmission traced to either club since Wohlfeil issued the temporary restraining order in early November.

Deputy Attorney General Patty Li, representing the state, argued Wednesday that conditions involving the virus has changed since Wohlfeil’s initial ruling, citing increased case and death numbers, as well as a reduction in ICU capacity in the Southern California region, which she was noted was near zero.

The ruling is at odds with another San Diego judge’s finding in a separate case that denied a request from local restaurants and gyms to resume indoor operations.

In that case, San Diego Superior Court Judge Kenneth J. Medel ruled “while there may be evidence that shows a current minimal COVID-19 spread in the restaurants and gyms of San Diego County, that does not necessarily mean that restrictions in these sectors going forward are unwarranted.”

However, that ruling came prior to the regional stay-at-home order that also prohibited outdoor dining.

A hearing on the request for a preliminary injunction in that case is slated for Friday afternoon.

Mayor Todd Gloria voiced concern over Judge Wohlfeil’s ruling on Twitter. Gloria wrote, “No one wants our small businesses to be closed, but the science and data are showing a dire trend in hospitalizations and deaths.” Continuing, “I am asking San Diegans to continue to stay home as much as possible, wear a mask, avoid large gatherings, and order to-go to support small businesses.”

Nicholas Kacha, the owner of Rudford’s Restaurant in North Park, spoke to KUSI News to share his reaction to the ruling, and Judge Wohlfeil’s clarification.

Kacha said they have resumed indoor dining, and are excited to get back to work. His full conversation with KUSI’s Ginger Jeffries is below.