Salon owner Shelly Luther of Salon a la Mode in Dallas was sentenced to seven days in jail for refusing to apologize to the court and Judge Eric V. Moye for violating a cease and desist order for opening her salon prior to the date set by Gov. Greg Abbott.
Judge Moye gave Ms. Luther a choice. Apologize for violating the court order, or face jail time. Her response has since resonated throughout the nation.
"I have much respect for this court and laws. I have never been in this position before and it's not someplace that I want to be. But I have to disagree with you, sir, when you say that I'm selfish because feeding my kids is not selfish. I have hair stylists that are going hungry because they'd rather feed their kids. So sir, if you think the law is more important than kids getting fed, then please go ahead with your decision but I am not going to shut the salon."
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In my humble opinion, no mother should ever be placed in a position to apologize for defending and meeting the needs of her children. A good mother would go to the ends of the Earth to help her children in any situation. And that is exactly what she did.
But not only was she trying to provide for her family. She has also been helping the stylists which rent space in her salon by not charging them rent for their stations. Yet she is the one which still has to pay the lease for the shop.
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Earlier today, Attorney General Ken Paxton penned a letter to Judge Moye describing his frustration that while criminals are being released due to fears they may become infected with the Covid-19 virus, someone trying to feed their children is put into that very jail.
Governor Greg Abbott released a statement joining with AG Paxton, and outlined that jailing any Texan for non-compliance is the last available option.
Throughout the day people across Texas and the nation have called for the release of Shelly Luther, and others have set up Go Find Me posts to help cover the fines imposed by Judge Moye. One such post has collected over $430,000 in the last twenty four hours.
In a time where most small businesses have been closed for over a month, many are now closing their doors for good. This mother was only doing what comes naturally to every mother. Take care of her children.
One thing which many people are not aware of or have mentioned is, Mother’s Day is this Sunday.
Free Shelly Luther now!
