In a March 21 executive order, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy published a list of essential businesses that would be exempt from the state's mandatory closures, and liquor stores were included.
In explaining his administration's rationale, Murphy recounted at a recent press conference the story of a woman who "was on her knees profusely thanking me for keeping the liquor stores open as it relates to just the whole addiction front."
He added: "She said that...the alternative would have been crushing for a lot of people."