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* Star Courier on November 25th…
The food permits of several Henry County restaurants have been suspended, the Henry County Health Department confirmed Tuesday. The suspensions were handed down after several area restaurant and bar owners defied the governor’s most recent mitigation measures and continued to serve patrons indoors. […]
As of Tuesday, the Broken Chimney remained closed, but at noontime, Cerno’s Bar and Grill continued to serve food without a food permit, even as the attorney for the restaurant’s owners, Thomas DeVore, appeared in Henry County Court at a preliminary hearing.
On Monday, a complaint for a preliminary injunction was filed against the restaurant owners and a motion for a restraining order barring the restaurant from opening. The hearing was scheduled for Tuesday at 11:30 a.m.
On Tuesday afternoon, the bar and grill owners announced the restaurant’s closing on their Facebook page.
“Today our lawyer went to court for us and battled for our doors to stay open, unfortunately the judge did not rule in our favor. That ruling unfortunately means a temporarily full shut down. The health department is working to decipher the rules on reestablishing our food license,” the post read.
* December 3rd on this here blog…
A lawsuit filed by a Thayer bar against the Sangamon County Department of Public Health on November 25th was thrown out Wednesday afternoon. Represented by Attorney Thomas DeVore, Brewzrz Pub claimed that the Public Health Department violated Illinois law by suspending its food license on November 19, 2020 as a result of the bar’s failure to comply with Sangamon County’s Covid-19 mitigation restrictions prohibiting indoor dining and bar service.
* FOX 2 St. Louis on December 8th…
Seven restaurants in St. Clair County have faced recent aggressive actions from the local health department and more actions are coming soon. It’s a new approach to shutting down indoor dining.
Restaurants defying indoor dining orders did not think Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s order was enforceable. Then the St. Clair County Health Department started stripping businesses of their food licenses.
Why on Earth would they think the order was unenforceable? You guessed it…
“You have a very small segment of county health departments, and it’s 6 or 7 out of the 102 at this point, St. Clair County being one of them, that’s saying, ‘Well, we’re not closing or making your business off limits to the public, we’re just gonna suspend your food license,’” said attorney Tom DeVore. […]
“The suggestion is they can still use their bar or restaurant to teach typewriter maintenance I guess, but you’re not closed and off limits to the public to where we have to follow the law,” he said. “‘We’re just telling you, you don’t have a food license.’ It’s a big work around.”
*** UPDATE *** Gee, I wonder where he got this false information?…
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District removed the food permit of Apple Dumplin’, 2014 N. High Cross Road, for continuing to serve indoors, but the restaurant continued to operate without the permit, according to health district Administrator Julie Pryde. […]
Earlier Wednesday, Flanigan contended it’s not illegal to serve indoors, and that he believes Gov. J.B. Pritzker would have had to turn to the state Legislature to pass a law banning indoor restaurant and bar service beyond 30 days of the original order back in March.
He said the health district told him last Thursday that his food permit would be removed, but he passed his health inspection without issues Nov. 24.
“To me, it doesn’t matter,” he said about his food permit being removed. “Even if they did, they did it wrongly.”
Selling snake oil to people to ease their headaches is one thing. Marketing it as a cure for desperate people with terminal cancer is quite another. The ARDC, the Supreme Court, the IBA or somebody needs to step in here. Now.
posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 10:46 am
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But, Google doesn’t tell me what I want to hear.
Comment by Bruce( no not him) Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 10:51 am
In addition to typewriter maintenance, maybe they can teach “Intro to Law 101″ to DeVore.
Comment by don the legend Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 10:57 am
Will County Health department continues to state they have no authority to strip food licenses from businesses defying state orders.
Not coincidentally, region 7 is one of the worst performing when it comes to the rapid spread of the virus in the state.
Comment by TheInvisibleMan Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:02 am
They must be using Bing.
Comment by Precinct Captain Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:02 am
+1 for what Bruce said. Exactly what I was going to say while adding that people’s news sources have become Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Fox News etc. Anything that allows them to live inside their identity bubble.
Comment by Big Jer Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:02 am
You’ve got be some kind of sucker to listen to DeVore.
Regardless of how desparate you are, you really think you’re going to be able to serve food once the county health department steps in?
Only calls to question what other guidelines haven’t you been following?
Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:03 am
Will DeVore cut them a check when one of the restaurants’ insurance companies refuses to process a claim? And I’m not just talking about contact tracing type liability — slip and fall, too. And I’ve been to a few of the Springfield establishments that are part of the resistance…some are the kind of joint where a bar fight breaks out on occasion. Lot’s of liability issues arise when fists are flying.
Comment by Roman Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:04 am
===“‘We’re just telling you, you don’t have a food license.’ It’s a big work around.”===
For a business.which.serves.food. A big work around. Ya think?
Comment by Proud Sucker Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:04 am
How much more damage does DeVore get to do before the IADC gets involved?
How can an attorney tell a food license client that the loss of their food license somehow does not mean they have to shut their doors until the license is restored?
Comment by Socially DIstant Watcher Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:14 am
Making sure restaurants serve food in safe environments. Sounds exactly like the kind of thing I expect my local health department to do. At this point, you have to wonder if Devore is just trying to stall things until the heat is off.
Comment by Southern Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:21 am
The Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) is the agency of the Supreme Court of Illinois which registers attorneys and investigates complaints of misconduct filed against attorneys holding a license to practice law in Illinois.
You can file a complaint of misconduct here: https://www.iardc.org/htr_filingarequest.html
– MrJM
Comment by @misterjayem Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:22 am
Grifters gonna grift.
Comment by Chicago Cynic Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:36 am
I’m not much of a fan of this particular remake of Groundhog Day. Tom DeVore just isn’t that believable of a character. No attorney in the real world would keep trying and losing the same case under the same circumstances making the same arguments. How would they keep finding clients to pay for the same attorney to continually fail. There’s no way cash strapped restaurants struggling to survive during a pandemic would pay for such an ill fated effort either. Neither would there be customers willing to share air space during such a pandemic when they could just get take out, enjoy the same food and not risk infection. The whole scenario is completely unbelievable, I give it zero stars. Personally, I’d rather spend my time watching something more realistic, like The Day After Tomorrow or perhaps the movie 2012.
Comment by AC Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:53 am
There’s a restaurant in my town that is refusing to change their service pattern and daring the state or county to intervene. It seems to be pretty crowded most of the times I’ve driven by. I’m not sure why they are still open.
Comment by Friendly Bob Adams Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 11:55 am
Isn’t Google where DeVore got his license to practice law? Or was that at K-mart before they closed? It’s all about the art of losing in order to make the clients feel the freedom.
It’s honestly hard to believe these business owners putting everything they have in their businesses in his hands. I’ve listened to a couple of his Facebook Live speeches that he gives and it’s like a group gathering at the Corner Tavern.
Comment by Club J Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 12:02 pm
Tommy DeVore’s business plan—“acting negligently” for my clients because it’s really all about me.
Could be that negative attention is better than no attention at all.
Comment by Rudy’s teeth Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 12:10 pm
When is cook county going to start enforcing this?
Drive around the suburbs and it looks like half the restaurants don’t know a pandemic is happening.
Comment by Dee Lay Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 12:46 pm
Could the health department in solidly red Henry county please call their peers at the Tazewell county health department and tell them to get in the game. There’s no excuse.
Comment by Shaun in East Peoria Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 12:51 pm
Maybe the state should start pulling funds from local health departments that not doing anything, plus maybe suspend the local health official certificate or license or approval, as they have to have one to be the local health department director
Comment by 13TH Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 12:57 pm
Not everyone “googles.”
I sometimes need to step out of my bubble to remind myself that not everyone owns a computer or has an internet connection besides their cellphone — and I know what you’re thinking, these folks run a business but you can get by in a lot of things without developing any skill or true familiarity with a computer and they might just be pressing buttons on a POS or performing the same half dozen operations their IT person/accounting person showed them how to do.
Comment by Candy Dogood Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 1:12 pm
Repeatedly filing the same suit, when courts have ruled against him every single time, gets as close to 137 sanctions as you can get. At some point, a judge is going to grant sactions on the court’s own motion. This sort of thing really needs to stop.
Comment by Crash (fka Gooner) Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 1:14 pm
There are two disappointing things occurring in these times;
The dismissing of real, undisputed facts that exist and should be the basis of any and every argument, including policy
The lack of looking for factual data before arguing a point easily refuted with a simple search, and further, pushing that unchecked thought or “fact” to the first point I wrote above.
People are worried about the future of the politics…
I worry that this continuation of ignoring facts, pushing alternate facts, or literally making up a fact to make a point not only continues, it accelerates.
You only need to see (which I won’t name here) the new social media platforms created as “alternative” and tout “no fact checking” as freedom of speech.
I worry about that quite a bit.
Not googling here… that’s part an parcel of what I fear more and more.
Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 1:29 pm
DuPage County has the same idiots here. I saw that one of the restaraunts that we frequent was open. I called and told them I will never eat there again since they think they are above the law. I understand this is a sad situation and the Federal Gov’t needs to help actual small businesses instead of handing out corporate welfare.
Comment by Union Thug Gramma Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 2:16 pm
I hope people are paying close attention to all of these restaurants flouting the rules and make it a point to never frequent these places again. If they cannot follow the rules they shouldn’t be in business. What other rules are they not following?
Comment by Demoralized Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 2:43 pm
To what degree can those ignoring the order be denied a food/liquor/business license for an extended number of years? I would support that… their defiance puts lives at risk, and may already have cost lives.
Comment by Lincoln Lad Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 3:25 pm
No, Google tracks everything you do.
Comment by Nameless Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 3:40 pm
Jeez you guys. Next thing, you are going to want these restaurants to wash their dishes. With soap and everything.
Comment by SAP Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 4:08 pm
You’re right, Rich. Sometimes this guy provides a little bit of an amusing diversion, and you know that some of these places would have done what they’re doing whether he was in the picture or not, but this has gone far enough.
Although, I guess he’d probably continue to “practice” law even if his license did get pulled.
Comment by notsosure Wednesday, Dec 9, 20 @ 4:35 pm