Bellmawr

It was leg day at Atilis Gym.

After warning a pair of defiant gym owners not to play games, a judge on Friday found the Atilis Gym of Bellmawr in contempt of court and granted the state permission to lock or barricade the gym.

A gym in Bellmawr has been given another chance to follow New Jersey's COVID-19 restrictions as a judge Monday denied the state a new court order to lock the owners out for a second time.

The legal battle between state officials and a gym in Bellmawr that has defiantly opened its doors against New Jersey's pandemic restrictions has reached another round.

A federal judge has declined to allow a Bellmawr gym to reopen as it continues a constitutional challenge to the state order that shut down businesses deemed non-essential in order to help stem the spread of COVID-19.

A federal complaint has been filed by Atilis Gym against Gov. Phil Murphy and his administration for what the business calls unconstitutional restrictions during the pandemic.

The state Department of Health followed through on the threat by Gov. Phil Murphy to use its authority to close Atilis Gym in Bellmawr after the owners defied the governor's pandemic order for three days in a row.

Co-owner Ian Smith said police are monitoring members as they enter and exit Atilis Gym and ticket them as they leave.

Atilis Gym in Bellmawr opened for a second day in defiance of Gov. Phil Murphy's executive order prohibiting non-essential businesses from opening.

A hair salon in Morris County has set its own tentative reopening date, as its owners are getting frustrated by what they said is a lack of an action plan that involves them.