Texas salon owner Shelley Luther, who had been jailed for opening her business in violation of state coronavirus restrictions, has been ordered released by the Texas Supreme Court, Fox News is reporting.
The order came as Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order retroactively eliminating jail time for those found violating the state’s restrictions.
Abbott tweeted on Thursday: “Throwing Texans in jail whose biz's shut down through no fault of their own is wrong. I am eliminating jail for violating an order, retroactive to April 2, superseding local orders. Criminals shouldn’t be released to prevent COVID-19 just to put business owners in their place.”
Luther is the owner of Salon A la Mode in Dallas.
She was sentenced to seven days in jail and a $7,000 fine by Judge Eric Moyé, after she refused to admit that her motivation in keeping her salon open was “selfish.”
Moyé said Luther had violated Texas stay-at-home orders when she reopened her salon.
The governor’s decision was hailed by the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton.
"I applaud Gov. Abbott’s decision to ensure that penalties for violating public health orders are reasonable and not excessive,” Paxton said. “All Texans are trying to get through this crisis together and no one should be put in jail unnecessarily.”