Costa Mesa bar owner first in country to face criminal charges for violating Covid boundaries – Orange County Register

Costa Mesa bar owner accused of repeatedly flouting emergency health measures has become the first Orange County business owner to face criminal charges for operating during the pandemic of COVID-19.

Roland Michael Barrera, owner of the Westend Bar, faces one count of trespassing and neglect to obey legal order and regulation. Luiza Giulietta Mauro, a bar manager, has been charged with the offense of resisting a police officer, according to court records.

According to a statement from the Orange District Attorney’s Office.

The Westend Bar has hosted 50 to 70 patrons “on several occasions” without requiring them to socially distance themselves or wear headgear, prosecutors said.

They also allege that around 11 p.m. on December 12, Mauro grabbed a uniformed policeman to prevent him from entering the bar.

Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley said the Westend Bar has in fact expanded its business, transforming itself into a “nightclub-style environment” that would not be permitted even without current sanitary restrictions.

“We are now at a point where we are in a public health crisis, possibly on the verge of disaster,” Foley said. “Gone are the days of continuing education about what people already know and intentionally challenge.

“It was quite obvious that they were just making fun of all public health orders,” she added of the Westend Bar.

No one answered a call at the bar Thursday afternoon and a voicemail box was full. It was not immediately clear whether Barrera or Mauro had hired lawyers to represent them.

The current curfew and closures have drawn protests from many restaurant and bar owners. Some have openly defied the mandates, while others have spoken out or raised concerns on social media. For some business owners, it has turned into protest, while others say it is simply a fight for survival.

DA officials say they chose to focus on “a philosophy of education and awareness” regarding health orders, declining to lay charges in nearly two dozen cases they have received involving businesses in County D ‘Orange accused of operating illegally amid the pandemic.

But District Attorney Todd Spitzer said it was unacceptable for the Westend Bar to “repeatedly flout” the regulations and continue to operate “without even attempting to institute mitigation measures designed to save lives.

“This is a company that has had opportunity after opportunity to take corrective action and it has failed to do so,” Spitzer said in a statement. “This blatant disregard for local and state health ordinances is a slap in the face to hard-working business leaders who continue to try to do the right thing in these extremely difficult times.

Foley said that allowing businesses to operate without health orders hurts businesses that “are good citizens and care for our community and their employees.”

She added that she was also concerned about reports of local bars and restaurants planning to hold New Year’s celebrations amid the pandemic.

“There are a growing number of companies across Orange County who have decided they know more than public health scientists,” Foley said.

Barrera, 47, of Costa Mesa and Mauro, 26, of Huntington Beach, both face up to a year in prison if convicted. However, prosecutors said they hoped that if there were no new violations the case could be resolved through “educational efforts rather than jail time.”