The mayor of Paterson, Andre Sayegh, has announced that he has set up a police unit to specifically enforce governor Phil Murphy’s “stay at home” order that urges New Jersey residents to practice social distancing. The order also forces the closure of nonessential businesses. The unit will run seven (7) days a week, and is focus will be to break up gatherings that risk spreading the coronavirus, and it will also crackdown on nonessential businesses who remain open. The mayor said, “We are taking a zero tolerance approach to protect Patersonians during this pandemic, their health and safety is my priority.”
According to Jerry Speziale, Public safety director, the unit was deployed on Wednesday. The unit already closed four businesses, and twelve (12) people were issues summonses. Speziale noted, “This is about saving lives. It’s not about being difficult with the public. It’s a serious matter.” He also added that groups need to stop hanging out in street corners, and that most people and businesses are abiding by the governor’s order.
Paterson is seeing an exponential growth of virus cases. Municipal officials reported 532 infections on Wednesday, which is a jump from 376 the previous day. Paterson has reported that the cases are doubling every 48 hours and six (6) people have already died from virus-related complications. Most recently, on April 7, 2020, Paterson Mayor, Andre Sayegh announced that he has tested positive for covid-19 after working closely in the city with front line workers.
Click here to read more about the Paterson enforcement unit at www.patersontimes.com.
