Gov. Murphy Warns: Businesses Flout COVID Rules, Put NJ At Risk

NEW JERSEY — Gov. Phil Murphy called on bars and restaurants to work harder to stop the spread of the coronavirus now that more businesses have been caught flouting COVID-19 orders.

During a Wednesday news conference, Murphy took particular exception to Portobello in Oakland after a recent photo surfaced of a largely maskless, over-capacity gathering at the establishment.

"Are you kidding me?" Murphy asked, while a picture of the crowded gathering was shown on screen.

The photo depicted a gathering that was both over capacity and in violation of state COVID-19 guidelines, State Police Col. Patrick J. Callahan confirmed Wednesday. The restaurant was also cited for maintaining a nuisance, he added.

Murphy praised town officials who quickly revoked the bars outdoor dining permits, banning them from serving customers past 4 p.m.

However, Murphy added that the proverbial bad apples in New Jersey's restaurant scene are giving a "black eye" to the industry as a whole, as they continue to navigate the coronavirus pandemic.

"We will not tolerate knucklehead behavior like this, that puts people at risk," said Murphy.

That knucklehead behavior isn't a new theme in New Jersey, despite an "overwhelming number of restaurant owners are playing by the rules," Murphy said.

The administration has taken other bars and restaurants to task in recent days and weeks, just a month after placing additional restrictions on indoor dining and banning bar seating. Murphy is also reducing the limits on outdoor gatherings.

Read more:

• Gov. Murphy Clarifies Rules For NJ Indoor Dining, Bars, Barbers
• Gov. Murphy Limits Outdoor Gatherings To 25; Halts Indoor Sports

In Little Falls, Chela's Restaurant & Bar was singled out during a recent news conference after they were cited for not complying with COVID-19 protocols.

Nine coronavirus cases were also recently linked to staff at Leggetts in Manasquan, according to the State Department of Health.

Though some problem restaurants are causes for concern, Murphy said it's still important to support the industry as much as possible as business owners continue to navigate through the coronavirus pandemic. He added that he and his family try to eat at local restaurants when possible.

Recently, however, that resulted in him catching an earful from an unhappy constituent during a profane tirade caught on video. READ MORE: Video Shows Women Aiming Profane Tirade At NJ Gov. Murphy, Family

Murphy spoke as he also said he's not ready to close school buildings statewide and shift instruction to remote, despite a new report showing that the coronavirus risk is now "high" in all 21 New Jersey counties.

Murphy said this week that New Jersey's schools have had a very small number of cases, all of which were likely caused by contact that happened outside of the buildings.

Murphy was responding to the state Department of Health's most recent "COVID-19 Activity Level Report," which is issued weekly.

Here is the Wednesday news conference:

The newest report says the coronavirus activity level rose from "moderate" to "high" over the past week in three New Jersey counties — Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland. Now, all 21 are at the "high" level.

New Jersey's statewide activity is also at a "high" level, the DOH said, now that the Garden State's new daily case total topped 4,600 for only the second time ever on Tuesday. It's also the first time New Jersey has been at the "high" level since May.

On Wednesday, Murphy said New Jersey had 56 more deaths and 4,350 new cases.

The coronavirus risk rose to "high" in each of the counties because:

• The new daily case rate in each of the counties rose to 10 or more per 100,000 people.
• The percent of COVID-19-like illnesses rose above 5.52 in each of the counties.
• The percent of positive cases rose above 10.01.

New Jersey Coronavirus Updates: Don't miss local and statewide announcements about novel coronavirus precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.