Vermonters crowdsource legal funding for gym owner’s battle with Donovan

By Guy Page

A crowd-sourced funding page for Club Fitness, the Rutland gym embattled in a legal tussle with Vermont Attorney General TJ Donovan, had raised $3,060 as of Friday morning.

Club Fitness Legal Support was begun six days ago by Sean Manovill, owner of Club Fitness. The club, opened earlier this month for indoor operations, shut down to comply with a legal order, and then reopened outdoors because the order specifically prohibited indoor operation.

On Wednesday, Donovan’s office published a lengthy, bullet-pointed letter explaining the terms under which the gym may operate outdoors. However Donovan himself during a WCAX interview was anything but conciliatory: “The idea that he is just going to leave his equipment out in his parking lot and people could come and use it is just unacceptable. That just makes no sense. And so, at the end of the day, this needs to stop. He needs to follow the order. He needs to shut down or there are going to be some possible consequences.”

Guy Page

Rather than accept the “possible consequences” — contempt of court, which carries possible jail time — Manovill, a husband and father of two, followed Donovan’s order that “he needs to shut down.” Speaking of the risk of jail, Manovill said in a Facebook post this week, “I cannot do that to my wife and two children.”

He has reason for concern. Of all of Vermont’s senior elected officials, Donovan has been the most aggressive on promising punishment for infractions of the governor’s executive orders. At a March 30 press conference announcing travel restrictions, Gov. Phil Scott and others hedged on questions of enforcement. Not so Donovan. He specifically noted that fines of up to $10,000 and jail time of up to six months can be imposed.

But Manovill isn’t giving up. While he does not have the Attorney General’s $12 million budget funding 147 employees including many well-paid lawyers, Vermont justice is still presumed to be blind. But hiring a good lawyer to get her to see your way costs money. Thus the crowd-sourced funding request, Manovill explains:

“Recently, the State of Vermont has decided to take a route to control free people from making a decision about their health and wellness. In their wake, Club Fitness has been forced into legal ramifications. Club Fitness wants to stand up for what we believe in, and what our amazing Club Fitness Family believes in. We have the option to fold, and let the lawmakers have their wishes, but by standing up, we have the ability to change the direction for business all across the state.  The importance of here and now has never meant so much.”

Clearly many funders agree.

Neil Johnson donated $100. The 2018 candidate for the Moretown seat in the Vermont Legislature wrote: “Hey TJ, You let drug dealers run rampant with no consequences, permits needed or convictions. But you’ll fine, tax, regulate and now jail business owners? For not believing in your little brown shirt team ideas that everyone from the Governor to you, and all the other socialist love…..you’re gonna jail healthy people, quarantine the healthy while you guys did nothing for the elderly? There is no science behind any of your moves, you and Scott are what is wrong with Vermont. We are a republic of free men last I knew, innocent until proven guilty, defense of our constitution from threats foreign and domestic, are you familiar with THOSE TERMS?”

Linden Politi donated $10: “Our human rights, our Constitutional rights, and our sovereignty over ourselves on this earth is being attacked and violated by an onslaught of power hungry bad actors. We must defend our rights or lose them.”

Bradford Broyles donated $100. “The Governor asked us to flatten the curve and we did. Time to stop picking which businesses can open and which cannot. Get yourself a good constitutional lawyer and fight this fight, you’ll win.”

Other avenues for redress and protest are open to concerned Vermonters who wish to act in wisdom and not fear. Our “checks and balances” form of government is built to empower citizen petitions against perceived overuse of government power. Here are the links for contacting officials:

Attorney General TJ Donovan
Governor Phil Scott
Legislators, all of whom have the power of the vote over all Covid-19 legislation, judiciary legislation, and budgeting of state offices.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr

Image courtesy of Vermont Secretary of State's Office

8 thoughts on “Vermonters crowdsource legal funding for gym owner’s battle with Donovan

  1. I used to think that I lived in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, not the UNITED SOCIALIST STATES OF AMERICA! But apparently not anymore. What is happening to Businesses all across the Country? The little guy is going out of business because they have to be closed! No one is supporting them! It’s a joke. When you can go to WAL-MART and buy a new Stereo for your Car (APPARENTLY IT’S A NECESSITY) but, you can’t but a Simple Radio for your House, (IT’S NOT A NECESSITY)! HMM …. RADIO FOR CAR, RADIO FOR HOUSE, it’s a nobrainer!! Hell, I can’t even get a Haircut! Putting someone in jail for trying to keep his Business open is just plain NUTS!!!

    • Keith, yup welcome to Socialist Vermont and the Socialist USA,
      as long as you have liberals in charge we are in trouble as the
      Constitution means nothing to them.

      Vermont and its lame Governor and his following the liberal agenda,
      control, control, control, show me the facts & data ??

      Save Vermont from the Liberal Virus, vote them out before they kill
      the state.

  2. Don’t know what all this fuss is about. If morons choose to go out and through this stupid exposure get sick, that’s their problem, just don’t contaminate others.

    • A foundation upon which government can build any authoritarian agenda to eliminate all rights permanently. You’re giving a blank check to tyranny.

  3. Gov. Flip Flop Scott won’t do anything. He is a weakling. He will do whatever the liberal democrats tell him to do. Donovan acts like a Gestapo. He’s power-hungry. He wants to be higher up in the government. They let prisoners out because of Covid-19 but put healthy people in prison. That shows you what the state of Vt officials think of Vermonters… This is what the far left wants ” CONTROL”…We need to stand up and “TAKE BACK VERMONT” !!!!

  4. Gov.Scott needs to step in and stop this nonsense and rein in his ” Mini ” pitbull,
    or is it a poodle……………….

    What a shameful display of the power local Government thinks they have, time to
    fix this state from the top-down…………….. we deserve better !!

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