Idaho mom of six faces jail for breaking stay-at-home order


Idaho mom of six faces jail for breaking stay-at-home order

An Idaho mom could face jail time for holding a yard sale during the state’s strict lockdown order, cops said.

Christa Thompson was first warned on April 9 that her garage sale was breaking the law — but still had it running more than a week later, despite repeated warnings, Rathdrum Police Department said.

Cops finally issued Thompson a citation for breaking the lockdown measures last Friday while making their fourth trip out to warn her after repeated complaints from neighbors, police said.

“A garage sale/yard sale is not an essential business and should not be open for business,” police said in a statement, noting it “filled the entire front yard and spilled into the back yard as well.”

Violating the stay-at-home order in Idaho is a misdemeanor that is punishable by up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine, or both, according to the Idaho Statesman.

Thompson’s husband, Peter Thompson, claimed to the Coeur d’Alene Press that they were just sorting through his wife’s late father’s belongings rather than holding a yard sale.

Admitting that police had been out to see them, he insisted that the officers assured them it was OK to sell stuff “as there’s no signs or advertising,” saying, “So we didn’t.”

“I talked to my lawyer,” Peter said. “He said we’re not doing anything wrong. I don’t consider this a business, you know?

“And we’re trying to raise six kids, too.”


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