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BREAKING: Judge James Chalfant issues tentative decision in the CRA/Mark Geragos' lawsuit vs L.A. County re: outdoor dining ban. Judge GRANTS a preliminary injunction, writing that the County "acted arbitrarily" and "failed to perform the required risk-benefit analysis." @FOXLA
This does not mean outdoor dining will be able to return right now, because the state Stay at home order is still in effect. However, the judge is restricting L.A. County from continuing the ban indefinitely. It will end on 12/16 and can't be reimposed until an analysis. @FOXLA
The judge writes that L.A. County "could be expected to consider the economic cost of closing 30,000 restaurants, the impact to restaurant owners and their employees, and the psychological and emotional cost to a public tired of the pandemic.” @FOXLA
This is not FINAL. This is the judge’s temporary decision that he has sent to both sides of the litigation for them to review. There is formal hearing at 1:30pm today, and things could change, but there is where the judge’s mind is at right now, ruling against L.A. County @FOXLA
Representatives from the California Restaurant Association and Mark Geragos' team tell me they are encouraged by this 53 page tentative decision from the judge, but they won't have a formal comment until the hearing this afternoon is over. We will monitor it. @FOXLA
In a nutshell...what this ruling means, if it sticks, is that once the state Stay at Home order drops, outdoor dining will return to L.A. County, unless the county is able to provide an "appropriate risk-benefit analysis" and change the judge's mind. @FOXLA
Remember when L.A. County Supervisor @SheilaKuehl claimed to have "six studies" showing evidence of outdoor dining risk? Curiously, none of it appears in the "County evidence" section of this ruling. Actually, it says studies show COVID is less likely to spread outdoors. @FOXLA
