1st McHenry Co. Business Cited For Violating COVID-19 Rules
CRYSTAL LAKE, IL — The McHenry County State's Attorney's Office has issued its first notice to appear in court to a business that they say violated state coronavirus guidelines surrounding mask violations, the Northwest Herald is reporting. Crystal Lake Health Food Store faces a class A misdemeanor and a fine that ranges from $75 to $2,500 if convicted on the charge.
Historically, local health officials have been focused on educating businesses on state guidelines regarding social distancing, masking and other rules meant to slow the spread of COVID-19 but have taken a tougher stance in recent weeks, forwarding several complaints to the state's attorney's office.
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The round of complaints included several restaurants continuing to allow dining inside despite a state mandate banning indoor dining and drinking. But McHenry County State's Attorney Patrick Kenneally said he wouldn't cite the businesses and questioned the legal legitimacy of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's executive order.
Instead, he said, his office would enforce rules that establish limits on business occupancy and requires business employees and customers to wear masks and stay six feet away from each other.
McHenry County Civil Division Chief Norm Vinton said the Crystal Lake health store, 25 E. Crystal Lake Avenue, is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 7 and faces the misdemeanor charge for refusing to wear face masks, according to the Northwest Herald.
Crystal Lake Health Food Store store manager Dave Childress told the Northwest Herald they "welcome all in our store and we are especially mindful of personal and medical freedoms."
“We allow our employees and customers to make their own decisions regarding health," Childress said.
Typically, local health officials issue several warnings to businesses and also try to get the business in compliance with state guidelines before referring matters to the state's attorney's office. The educational approach requires health department workers to, sometimes, make contact with a business several times to check if they are in compliance with state guidelines.
This article originally appeared on the Crystal Lake-Cary Patch
