Shelley Luther was sentenced to seven days in jail and a $7,000 fine for reopening her salon in Dallas, Texas, despite her county's stay-at-home orders. According to Luther, she decided to reopen Salon a la Mode because she needed the money to feed her kids and keep her employees on the payroll.
Both Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton disagreed with the judge's sentencing and said throwing the woman behind bars was the wrong move.
"I find it outrageous and out of touch that during this national pandemic, a judge, in a county that actually released hardened criminals for fear of contracting COVID-19, would jail a mother for operating her hair salon in an attempt to put food on her family’s table," Paxton said in a statement. "The trial judge did not need to lock up Shelley Luther. His order is a shameful abuse of judicial discretion, which seems like another political stunt in Dallas. He should release Ms. Luther immediately."
The state's Lt. Gov., Dan Patrick, however, had a creative suggestion for handling Luther's punishment: not only would he pay her $7,000 fine but he volunteered to be under house arrest so she could continue serving her clients and earn money to feed her children.
7 days in jail, no bail and a $7K fine is outrageous. No surprise Texans are responding. I’m covering the $7K fine she had to pay and I volunteer to be placed under House Arrest so she can go to work and feed her kids. #txlege #TexansHelpingTexans https://t.co/gdtMLAHFV5
— Dan Patrick (@DanPatrick) May 6, 2020
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