HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Hundreds of people visited Holland over the weekend, in a hastily arranged rally. Many said they were there to support Marlena Pavlos-Hackney, the Holland restaurant owner now in an Ingham County Jail for contempt of court.
Others used the event to promote their political campaigns. The crowd forced Jonker’s to close when customers couldn’t get to the business.
Those in the crowd largely ignored the state’s mask and social distancing rules, aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19. The virus is at the heart of the issue with Pavlos-Hackney, who has repeatedly refused to shut her restaurant when state health officials ordered restaurants closed to limit the spread of COVID-19.
As restaurants were allowed to reopen, first with a 25-percent capacity, then with 50-percent capacity, Pavlos-Hackney refused to follow follow those limits, nor did she require masks or social distancing, all aimed at limiting the coronavirus.
After Allegan County health officials alerted state food-safety officials, they suspended Pavlos-Hackney’s license to operate in January. But she continued running her business, attracting out-of-state visitors. In February a judge issued a court order for Pavlos-Hackney to comply with the state rules, which she also refused to follow. She was arrested by Michigan State Police during a traffic stop as she was on her way to work Friday. The restaurant operated on Friday.
During a court hearing in Ingham County Friday, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina expressed impatience with Pavlos-Hackney’s repeated interruptions and refusal to take the standard oath in court, swearing to tell “the whole truth.”
Pavlos-Hackney’s advisor, a Texas man who never attended law school and does not have a law degree, was also jailed during last week’s court hearing for attempting filing legal paperwork with the court, in violation of the law.
Pavlos-Hackey did get a licensed attorney last week, who told the court he does not think his client understands the law. Aquilina indicated Pavlos-Hackney would remain in jail until June 4, unless she paid a $7,500 fine and made it clear she would not reopen the restaurant until after she complies with all state food-safety rules and regains her license.
A GoFundMe organized in her support has raised more than $231,362, with a goal revised up from $50,000 to $250,000.
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