ORLANDO, Fla. – A group of bar owners in downtown Orlando were seeking an injunction to declare Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order suspending bars from selling alcohol for on-site drinking unconstitutional but a judge has denied their request.
Bars were first closed in April under an executive order from the Florida governor and then allowed to reopen in early June but on June 26, due an increase in COVID-19 cases around the state, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation issued a new emergency order banning on-premises consumption of alcohol by licensed vendors who derive more than 50% of revenue from alcohol sales.
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On July 1, the department amended the emergency order eliminating the 50% sales requirement and allowing any business with a food service license to operate, regardless of alcohol sales.
Irish Shannon’s, Chillers, Cahoots, Latitudes, Downtown Entertainment, 64 North, Aero, The Patio, Hanson’s Shoe Repair and Church Street Ventures, Inc. filed a complaint in July for a temporary injunction and to declare the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s emergency order unconstitutional.
Ninth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Kevin Weiss wrote, “This global pandemic has placed us in unchartered territory. It is not this Court’s role to second guess or otherwise micromanage Defendants’ present policy regarding the prohibition of ‘on-premises’ alcohol sales at bars and nightclubs, when the remedy is narrowly tailored to achieve the desired goal of public safety.”
Weiss said he found no evidence the governor or the DBPR abused the emergency authority allowed during a state of emergency like the one declared in April due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The Court understands and appreciates the difficult situation of the Plaintiffs and those similarly situated who, through no fault of their own, find themselves in such a precarious position, Weiss wrote. “However, (the bar owners) cannot demonstrate that they have a clear legal right to the requested relief.”
Weiss said the current distinction between bars that must close and restaurants that may open “are rational in light of the State’s legitimate interest in fighting this pandemic.”
The bar owners’ injunction request was denied on Wednesday, court records show.