Since the emergence of COVID-19, the County of San Diego has proceeded essentially in lockstep with the State’s efforts to curtail the spread of the coronavirus. On March 19, as the full impact of COVID-19 was becoming evident, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-33-20, which directed all residents to stay home except as needed to maintain operations of federal critical infrastructures. On March 27, the County Public Health Officer adopted EO N-33-20 and its designation of essential critical infrastructures, specified the categories of businesses that may remain open to the public, and set forth the parameters of social distancing.
Less than a week later, and obviously frustrated by his perception that the public was not taking these orders seriously enough, San Diego County Sheriff Gore announced: “The days of trying to get voluntary compliance are really over.”