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Businesses Owners Struggle To Enforce LA's Strict COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

WOODLAND HILLS (CBSLA) - Enforcing the City of Los Angeles' vaccine mandate, requiring anyone visiting the indoor portion of a long list of business types to be fully vaccinated, has made some business owners feel like they're caught in the middle and will pay the price if they don't enforce the new rules.

As new COVID mandates on both the city and county level have evolved, some businesses have seen physical clashes or verbal assaults.

The owner of Blinkie's Donuts provided CBSLA with video of a customer who became belligerent over the mask mandate.

"We've had a few confrontations with this man," Blinkie's owner, Teresa Ngo, said.

At Menchie's, a frozen yogurt shop, in Woodland Hills, the owner wanted to avoid conflict as the city's latest mandate, requiring proof of vaccination for indoor services at restaurants,  coffeeshops, salons and gyms, went into effect.

"We've decided to close our indoor dining and keep the outdoor dining and be open for takeout and outdoor dining," Marsha Haina, with Menchie's Frozen Yogurt, said.

On Monday in Santa Monica, a security guard at Vons Grocery Store stabbed a customer who witnesses said grew belligerent over wearing a mask, which is why Haina said she doesn't want her staff to deal with the added pressure of checking customers' vaccination records.

"I don't want to do anything to put myself or my employees in harm's way whatsoever," she said.

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Monty's Steakhouse has both indoor and outdoor seating available for customers.

"All we ask is the people that in, your patrons, respect those because we're not policemen and that's the hard part. They're asking us to be policemen," Michael Levine, owner of Monty's Steakhouse, said.

The restaurant started asking customers to show vaccination proof last week, if they wanted to dine indoors.

"Two customers out of a hundred had a problem," Levine said.

At Blinkie's Donuts, Ngo pointed out that it's the businesses who will be held responsible for not enforcing the mandate, not the customers.

"Unfortunately, it's us the business owners, for not being compliant, we can get a fine. We can be shutdown. It's been hard enough to survive through COVID," she said.

Business owners do have a grace period before Nov. 29, when city enforcement of the new mandate goes into effect. The fine for failing to verify customers' vaccination status can go as high as $5,000.

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