Governor Phil Murphy this afternoon lifted the stay-at-home order he first imposed on March 21st to help combat the coronavirus.

“We would not be at this point today had we not taken this step,” Murphy told reporters in the War Memorial in Trenton.

Effective immediately, the governor also lifted his ban on indoor gatherings, permitting gatherings to 25% of a building’s capacity or 50 people total.

“And, yes, this order will allow for greater indooor religious services,” said Murphy. “We believe this represents a responsible plan.”

Efffective immediately, too, he raised the limit on outdoor gathers from 25 to 100.

Murphy said he anticipates raising the limit on non-protest and non-religious activies outdoor gatherings on June 22nd to 250; and on July 3rd to 500 people.

“This means school districts planning for graduations should prepare for a 500-person limit to be in-place,” said Murphy, who reported 375 new COVID-19 cases and 91 new deaths, bringing the statewide total to 164,796 cases and the death toll to 12,303.

“We cannot move through Stage 2 and into Stage 3, and beyond, unless we continue to see our numbers trending downward,” he added.

Murphy made his announcement in the aftermath of his appearance at two protests staged by activists seekin justice for George Floyd, a Minneapolis man killed while in police custody. Republicans – among them Assemblyman Jay Webber (R-26) criticized Murphy for failing to follow his own executive orders to stay at home and ban largescale gatherings.

Webber fired off a letter to Colonel Pat Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.

“In the ongoing effort to clamp down on those who would commit acts that our Governor has lectured us would threaten the public health and safety of us all, I write to inform you of two separate violations of Executive Order 148 that occurred yesterday in Westfield and Hillside,” the assemblyman wrote.

The governor defended himself.

“I’ve only seen a couple of headlines,” Murphy said. “This may be one of the most profound moments in our history. The state of racism is alive and well and it’s before our very eyes. This is a profound, filled with gravity momentous occasion in our nation’s history.”