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'Save San Diego' rally held Monday to protest purple tier closures

"That's what I'm getting from people, a sense of desperation where they feel like their backs are up against the wall," said El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif — San Diego businesses are pushing back against the state's purple tier restrictions.

There was a rally on Monday afternoon at Waterfront Park outside the county administration building.

Some local leaders said San Diego can't survive another shutdown and that the mental and economic toll is just too great.

"I think the entire way the government has handled this, especially California, has been an overreach," said El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells.

Saturday restaurant, gyms, and places of worship were forced to move their operations outdoors. Retail businesses cut capacity to 25%.

“Clearly we're aiming at the wrong targets," said San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond. "Right now you can get to a strip club, an indoor strip club, but you can't go to church indoors.”

Strip clubs are open right now because of ongoing litigation that heads back to court later this month, at which point they could be shut down again.

Earlier this month county health officials requested an adjudication, stating that the businesses required to shut down are not causing the outbreaks, but that request was denied by the state.

Mayor Wells said business owners are telling him they're desperate, and that they're not going to comply with the state's rules.

"People are telling me they're really afraid," he said. "[They're saying] 'I'm afraid they're going to take my liquor license, I'm afraid they're going to drag me to court, arrest me, but I have to because I've got kids and I've got payments I have to make. I've been doing this for eight months and I can't do it anymore.'"

“Our drug overdoses in San Diego County are tripling," said Desmond. "Rady Children's Hospital has seen a substantial increase in suicide attempts, physical abuse and sexual abuse.”

Over the weekend,  San Diego reached a daily record number of COVID-19 cases. 

County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher released this statement Sunday:

“This is a stark reminder that COVID is real, is spreading and must be taken seriously. At this point, we are pleading with the public to take action to slow the spread: wear a mask, physically distance, and limit contact with those outside of your household."

 But the frustration continues for businesses. Last week four local restaurants and gyms filed a lawsuit, naming state and local leaders including Governor Gavin Newsom, as well as Dr. Wilma Wooten, San Diego County's Public Health Officer.

Cowboy Star, Home and Away Encinitas, and two gyms, Fit Athletic Club and Bear Republic claim the state and county orders interfere with their rights and violate the California constitution.

It's not the only lawsuit the state is dealing with.

"While we do have serious public health concerns, we also have to be able to function as a society," said attorney Luke Wake of the Pacific Legal Foundation based in Sacramento.

Wake represents two businesses in central California who are also suing the state, claiming Governor Newsom doesn't have the authority to make the rules.

"The legislature cannot give a blank check to a state agency or to the governor or anyone else and say 'Do whatever you want,'" he said.

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