Texas Supreme Court Tosses Contempt Order Against Anti-Lockdown Activist
The Supreme Court of Texas threw out a contempt of court order against a small business owner who was jailed last year for refusing to shutter her business to comply with pandemic-related restrictions.
The temporary restraining order Dallas, Texas salon owner Shelley Luther was said to have violated “failed to set forth the conduct required and the legal basis for its issuance in clear, specific, and unambiguous terms,” the April 9 court decision said.
A year ago Luther became the face of the movement to resist the sometimes extreme pandemic lockdowns imposed by state and local governments.
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Source: AP Photo/LM Otero
There s been an update in the case of Shelley Luther, the Dallas salon owner who was briefly jailed last May for refusing to close her business in compliance with stay-at-home orders. On Friday, the Texas Supreme Court unanimously tossed out a civil and criminal contempt of court action against her, because the temporary restraining order the judge based it on was not clear on what conduct was prohibited, according to Chuck Lindell with Austin American-Statesman.
Lindell also reported that, with added emphasis:
On Friday, the court issued its ruling, agreeing with Luther s claim that the temporary restraining order did not properly inform the salon owner about what conduct was prohibited.
Shelley Luther, owner of Salon a la Mode in Dallas, spoke to a crowd of supporters in Frisco at an Open Texas rally against coronavirus pandemic restrictions in April 2020. Credit: REUTERS/Jeremy Lock
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Months before COVID-19 cases surged to record highs last year, Shelley Luther was fighting to keep her Dallas salon open despite safety guidelines. She had torn up a cease-and-desist order from Dallas County, and soon was fined $7,000 and sentenced to seven days in jail.
Texas Supreme Court tosses restraining order against Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther
Texas Supreme Court tosses restraining order against Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther
Shelley Luther would have faced five more days in jail for opening her business despite restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic if justices had found the order legitimate.
Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther reacts to seeing supporters after being released from Dallas County Jail on May 7, 2020 in Dallas. The Texas Supreme Court ordered Luther release.(Juan Figueroa / Staff Photographer)
A Dallas state district judge was wrong to issue a restraining order against salon owner Shelley Luther last year for opening her business despite restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, the state’s highest civil court has found.