Ohio cracks down on Pennsylvanians crossing state line to buy liquor
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Ohio is cracking down on Pennsylvania residents who cross state lines to shop at liquor stores in its effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.
In several border counties, in-person liquor sales are now restricted to Ohio residents only, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Any other time, we’d love to have visitors from Pennsylvania,” he said, according to Fox 8. “But right now this creates an unacceptable public health issue.”
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Those border counties are Ashtabula, Trumbull, Mahoning, Columbiana, Jefferson and Belmont.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}To make a purchase, shoppers will have to show a valid Ohio ID, an active duty military ID, or prove that they reside in the state by presenting mail or a bill with their Ohio address or a letter from an employer that shows they are in Ohio as an essential worker.
“This is necessary because of repeated instances of persons from Pennsylvania coming into these counties for the sole or main purpose of purchasing liquor,” DeWine said.
Pennsylvania closed its state-owned liquor stores in mid-March as part of its strategy to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That move, in addition to a move by West Virginia to restrict out-of-state liquor purchases in some of its border counties, prompted a surge of Pennsylvania residents driving to Ohio for their spirits, according to DeWine’s office.
Authorities at various levels of government around the country have been urging residents to practice social isolation, maintain healthy hygiene and avoid close contact with others in an effort to slow the spread of the contagion.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}There were more than 590,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. as of Tuesday, with more than 25,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University researchers.
In Ohio, there were 7,280 “confirmed and probable” COVID-19 cases with 324 deaths, state authorities said.
DeWine also faced protests Monday over the state's stay-at-home order, with dozens of people gathering outside the Ohio Statehouse demanding he put an end to social distancing restrictions and reopen the economy.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News' Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.