Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel castigated a 77-year-old barber who opened his shop in defiance of the state’s stay-at-home order by questioning his love for the United States.
“We’re not looking to throw people in jail,” Nessel said about Karl Manke, owner of Karl Manke’s Barber & Beauty Shop in Owosso, Michigan, who opened his doors last week despite a government order to remain closed. “That is, to me, a very, very, very last resort. We want him to discontinue his conduct, which we think is aiding and abetting in the spread of the virus.”
“Mr. Manke, he’s not a hero to me,” she added. “He’s not a patriot. A patriot is a person that fights all enemies, foreign and domestic, and does everything possible to protect his fellow countrymen and countrywomen. And to me, Mr. Manke is doing just the opposite of that, and he’s being selfish in his behavior in that what he’s doing is allowing the virus to spread.”
WATCH:
AG @dananessel says she doesn’t plan on arresting Owosso Barber Karl Manke, but she does have a message for him and his supporters.
“He’s not a hero. He’s not a patriot.”
MORE ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/nhbUcwnzWK
— Mikenzie Frost (@MikenzieFrost) May 13, 2020
Nessel filed a request for a temporary restraining order against Manke for opening his barbershop that was ultimately tossed out by a Shiawassee County Circuit judge.
Manke has been cited by police for a civil infraction and two misdemeanors, and he faces a fine of more than $1,000 when he appears in court in late June.
Nessel announced on Wednesday that the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs suspended Manke’s barber license, which will prevent him from cutting hair without incurring more fines.
Manke appeared at an anti-lockdown rally at the state Capitol in Lansing on Thursday and rallied the crowd, delivering the message that he won’t back down.
“The government is not my mother,” Manke told the crowd. “Never has been. I’ve been in business longer than they’ve been alive.”
“The government is not my mother. Never has been. I’ve been in business longer than they’ve been alive.”
Michiganders have had enough of Democrat Gretchen Whitmer’s nanny state
Whitmer is drunk on her own power! pic.twitter.com/pi94H0LxU3
— Elizabeth Harrington (@LizRNC) May 14, 2020
