Dallas Salon Owner Is Jailed for Defying Order to Stay Closed

A Dallas salon owner who reopened her business on April 24, defying state and county orders for nonessential establishments to remain closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, was sentenced on Tuesday to a week in jail and was fined at least $3,500.

The salon owner, Shelley Luther, was found to be criminally and civilly in contempt of court by Judge Eric V. Moyé of 14th Civil District Court in Dallas County, who said during a hearing that Ms. Luther had acted selfishly when she resumed operations at Salon À La Mode.

Ms. Luther’s salon operated for seven days after the city of Dallas obtained a restraining order against Ms. Luther, 46, according to Judge Moyé, who said that Ms. Luther could avoid jail time if she ceased her activities.

He also called on her to apologize to the elected officials whose orders she flouted, saying that until a vaccine for the virus is developed, citizens must obey emergency orders.

“Failure to do so will only have catastrophic consequences,” Judge Moyé said, “and those reach far beyond the exigencies of one family or one business.”

But Ms. Luther said that she would not comply with stay-at-home orders and that she had no regrets about reopening after a closure of more than a month.

“I have to disagree with you, sir, when you say that I’m selfish, because feeding my kids is not selfish,” Ms. Luther said. “So, sir, if you think the law’s more important than kids getting fed, then please go ahead with your decision. But I am not going to shut the salon.”

The hearing, conducted with strict social distancing measures in place, came just three days before hair and nail salons and barbershops will be allowed to reopen in Texas as certain social distancing restrictions are lifted by Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican.

Ms. Luther was taken into custody after the hearing, where she wore a mask. Judge Moyé also wore a mask and heard some testimony through a Zoom videoconference. Some of the court officials also participated through Zoom.

Warren V. Norred, a lawyer for Ms. Luther, said in an interview on Tuesday night that he planned to appeal the ruling immediately. He suggested that politics, not the spread of the virus, had prompted Judge Moyé to mete out jail time for Ms. Luther.

“It’s breaking Shelley Luther,” he said. “That’s what this court wants to do.”

Mr. Norred said it would be particularly tragic if Ms. Luther contracted the coronavirus while in jail.

On April 24, police officers visited Ms. Luther’s 19-seat salon and issued her a citation for reopening her business, which had been closed since March 22.

The next day, Ms. Luther appeared at a protest against stay-at-home orders in Frisco, Texas, where she tore up a cease-and-desist letter sent to her by a Dallas County judge.

Last Friday, Mr. Abbott lifted a stay-at-home order in Texas and allowed shopping malls, restaurants and other businesses to reopen at a limited capacity. That same day, Mr. Abbott told lawmakers that he expected the coronavirus to spread as businesses reopened, a comment that drew criticism from Democrats.

Mr. Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday night.

Also on Tuesday, the authorities in West Texas announced criminal charges against eight people, including the owner of a bar in Ector County that had reopened in defiance of the governor’s emergency order.

Manny Fernandez contributed reporting.