Police in Vallejo, Vacaville won't enforce COVID curfew
The announcements follow a similar one made by the Solano County Sheriff's Office this week.
(Graphic by Solano News Update)
Law enforcement officials in Vacaville and Vallejo say they will not the state’s curfew order that is intended to curb the growing rate of coronavirus infections in Solano Conuty and elsewhere.
The announcements made on social media this week follows a similar one issued by the Solano County Sheriff’s Office in which the agency said it would not commit its resources to enforcing the order that takes effect Saturday evening.
Though the underlying message was the same — none of the agencies are willing to commit resources to enforcing the order and won’t dispatch personnel when they receive citizen complaints about residents and businesses who aren’t following the curfew — they were different in their approach and overall tone.
In both messages issued by Vacaville and Vallejo, law enforcement officials urged members of the public to follow the state’s stay-at-home order, which prohibits social gatherings and non-essential travel between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.
The Sheriff’s Office, on the other hand, said it was up to individuals to police themselves and colored the issue as one of personal liberty over public safety.
“We encourage every individual who conducts their business in public to do so in a lawful manner and celebrate the upcoming holidays, mindful of the collective need to adhere to public health guidelines,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
This week, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a stay-at-home order for counties that are relegated to the “purple” COVID-19 restriction tier, which indicates a severe outbreak of virus-related illnesses and deaths within that region.
The order bans social gatherings and non-essential travel and business between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., with the curfew taking effect Saturday and lasting until December 21.
Those who need to travel for work, to pick up food, shop for groceries or visit the hospital are considered exempt from the order. It also does not prohibit people from working at their place of employment between those hours if their job duties cannot be performed remotely.
The order does not place any new restrictions on residents, businesses or visitors outside of those hours: Most businesses can remain open with modified operations as long as they adhere to public health guidance, including requiring patrons to wear face masks, reducing their customer capacity and offering services outdoors where required or possible.
The curfew also does not prohibit people from gathering with their families on Thanksgiving, though public health officials have strongly discouraged people from assembling with people outside of their immediate household. But it could create complications for individuals who choose to assemble at other homes or places of businesses if they intend to be away from their home after 10 p.m., since any travel from that point on would be considered non-essential.
That said, none of the three agencies in Solano County say they are willing to commit law enforcement resources to policing individuals who take it upon themselves to violate the curfew. Anyone who lodges a complaint about a person or business who isn’t complying will instead be referred to county health officials. In the past, the county’s health office has referred complaints about non-compliance to law enforcement.
Both the Vacaville and Vallejo police departments and the Solano County Sheriff’s Office said they will continue to respond to calls involving emergency situations as normal.
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