7 people issued $1,000 tickets for violating COVID-19 shelter-in-place order, Santa Cruz police chief says

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KGO) -- Seven people were issued $1,000 tickets in Santa Cruz for allegedly violating California's shelter-in-place order.

The police chief in Santa Cruz said the seven individuals came to the city from Fremont.

A photo from Chief Andrew Mills shows the alleged violators outside of a 7-Eleven store in Santa Cruz, where he said they were buying drinks.

"If you are not from Santa Cruz and you put our community at risk, you will get a ticket," he said on Twitter.

The state's shelter-in-place order limits Californians' travel to only the essentials -- such as food, car repairs or caring for a family member.

The order is in place due to the novel coronavirus pandemic and is intended to promote physical distancing.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday applauded Californians distancing efforts so far, but urged residents to continue staying at home and sheltering to flatten the curve even further.

California has 21,482 confirmed cases of COVID-19. A total of 599 residents have died in the state due to the virus.

This instance in Santa Cruz is not the first case of a shelter-in-place violation in the Bay Area.

In San Jose last month, 56 businesses were cited for violations -- including gyms, hair salons and restaurants.

San Jose police said at the time that they were taking more of an educational approach to the violations.

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