WINSLOW, Ariz. (Legal Newsline) – Police in Winslow, Arizona, say they handled properly a case in which a man refused to close his shop after being ordered to because of the COVID-19 pandemic and was taken into custody.
An understanding in the matter has now been reached, they say.
“The owner provided additional information about efforts the Authentic Indian Art Store is taking to transition the store to an ‘essential business,’” Winslow City Manager John C. Barkley told Legal Newsline.
On April 11, Winslow Police went to the Authentic Indian Store after receiving complaints that the owner, 71-year-old Daniel J. Mazon, had refused to close in accordance with an executive order shut-down from Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, who declared a public health emergency in March because of the coronavirus.
According to a report in Gateway Pundit, when officers visited him, Mazon began recording them with a cell phone and when the officers told him he had to close the shop, the owner argued that he was in compliance and had changed the store name to the “Indian Department Store.”
Mazon reportedly told officers he was now selling essential items such as hay, paper towels, water and food.
Police looked at the man’s store license.
Mazon had been warned twice about keeping his store open during the shutdown order, once by Winslow Mayor Thomas McCauley and once again by police in the days before the incident. The warnings were made after the store’s license was issued on March 24.
Police asked Mazon for his driver’s license, but he refused.
“You don’t need my driver’s license. I’m not driving,” Mazon was heard to respond in the recorded video.
Police then handcuffed and detained Mazon for refusing to identify himself.
Barkley said officers acted in accordance with their duties.
“Because the City is required to enforce the Governor’s Order, two separate warnings were provided to the store owner of the Authentic Indian Art Store for continuing to operate in-person, on-site transactions as a 'non-essential' business,” he explained. “After these warnings were ignored, the Winslow Police then acted reasonably and in good faith in issuing a citation upon the third visit to the store.”
Barkley said that during the enforcement action, the Winslow Police officer in charge found there was a reasonable suspicion of a violation of the Governor’s Executive Order, which carries a charge of a Class 1 Misdemeanor.
“Accordingly, the store owner was obligated to provide proof of identification, under Arizona statute,” Barkley said. “The owner refused to provide identification, and was detained on-site until his identification was confirmed, and then released and issued a citation for violation of the Executive Order.”
The report said Mazon and city officials have now come to an understanding.
“We have since reached out to the store owner to learn of his overall intent,” Barkley said.
Barkley said the store owner intends to provide more groceries, feed and agricultural products, which are all essential.
As a result, the City notified the store owner that the sale of essential products by the Authentic Indian Art Store and "non-essential" items incidental to such sales may be continued, provided that social distancing and sanitization measures are in place in accordance with the Governor’s Executive Order.
The Authentic Indian Art store re-opened immediately after the decision was reached.
The Arizona Attorney General’s Office declined comment on the matter, as did the office of state Rep. Andy Biggs (R-5th Dist).
Mazon’s case attracted attention statewide among conservative activists and lawmakers who accused some government officials of overreaching with the virus restrictions. On April 20, hundreds of protesters gathered at the Capitol in Phoenix and marched from Wesley Bolin Plaza to the executive tower where the Governor’s Office is located. The protesters claimed the response to contain COVID-19 is damaging the economy in a manner that outweighs the lives being saved by limiting the spread of the illness.
“The situation in Winslow begs the question of why restaurants are now able to act as grocery stores, and why a grocery store can sell jewelry, but a jewelry store supposedly can’t sell toilet paper and hay,” Rep. Bret Roberts, R-Maricopa, was quoted in the Arizona Mirror.
According to the Mirror, Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, voiced her support for Mazon.
“Please tell us where the store is so we can ride up there and patronize it,” she said.
Rep. Ben Toma, R-Peoria, called it a “troubling case.”