Wilmington business owner denied injuction to immediately open gym

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - A judge denied a request from a Wilmington-area businessman Monday to be able to immediately open his gym while his lawsuit against the state makes its way through the court system.

Jason Morgan, the owner of Muscleworx Fitness Systems, has been pushing to reopen his business during the coronavirus pandemic. When North Carolina moved into Phase Two of a reopening plan in recent weeks, businesses like gyms were required to continue to stay closed under Governor Roy Cooper’s executive order. Earlier in May, Morgan was cited for operating his gym outside of the governor’s stay-at-home order.

Morgan was seeking a temporary injunction to reopen while his case was being heard, but the judge allowed the case to be declared “exceptional” and assigned it to a judge in Raleigh.

Judge Gorham denied our TRO request. She has allowed the case to be declared exceptional which means it will get assigned to a Raleigh judge.
Posted by Muscleworx Fitness Center on Monday, June 1, 2020

In the complaint filed last week, Morgan revealed he’s been forced to move his business to Carolina Beach during this time in part because of the financial burden of the forced closure. Morgan argues he can not wait the expected five weeks before gyms may be able to open again according to the order.

Morgan’s lawsuit seeks the following:

A declaration that he is entitled to the enjoyment of the “fruits of his labor, free from the intrusion of the government, and that the government intrusion is not narrowly tailored to avoid denying Plaintiff’s State and/or Federal Constitutional rights"
An injunction and/or order prohibiting the enforcement of any and all executive orders of Gov. Cooper that prohibit the operation of his business.
An injunction and/or order prohibiting the enforcement of any and all executive orders prohibiting members and guests from using Muscleworx Fitness Systems.

Copyright 2020 WECT. All rights reserved.