A Los Angeles restaurant is refusing to let government restrictions in response to the coronavirus pandemic get in the way of their business, even going so far as to power their restaurant with a generator after the government had the electricity to their building turned off.
From The Blaze:
Tinhorn Flats refused to abide by a temporary restraining order issued March 8 that required the restaurant to remain closed because the restaurant violated COVID-19 restrictions, KTTV-TV reported.
But the restaurant continued operations in defiance of the order.
In response, a Los Angeles Superior Court said Friday that Burbank officials could disconnect power at the restaurant.
In a statement explaining the court’s decision, the city said that Tinhorn Flats had continued “to remain open in defiance of the Temporary Restraining Order” and that it was giving “24-hour notice” notice that it had been authorized to “disconnect the electricity” to the business. The statement further hinted that it would attempt to physically lock the building if the business did not comply, but noted that the court had so far not given them the go ahead to go that far.
But that move did not deter the restaurant’s owner, who announced on Facebook that they “will not comply” with the government:
“The owner says they will continue to stay open and are currently using a generator as a power source,” KTTV reported.
Indeed, the restaurant said in a Facebook post on Sunday, “We are open and we will NOT comply.”
The City of Burbank has continued to pursue legal action against the restaurant after city officials discovered it was not abiding by the city’s COVID-19 restrictions, which at the time prohibited both indoor and outdoor dining.
Restaurant co-owner Lucas Lepejian told local news that the establishment was not scared of the city, arguing that they were offering customers safe dining and that the government was “coming after us for having 10, 15 people in a small environment.”
Lepejian said the city’s rules didn’t “make sense,” while arguing that the rules were “completely unconstitutional” and vowing to continue “opposing tyranny.”
The battle rages as the City announced Monday that it would now permit indoor dining, though the loosened restrictions will still only allow restaurants to operate at 25% capacity.
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