A mother of six in Idaho could spend half a year in jail for holding a yard sale while the state was under a stay-at-home order.
In a post on social media, Rathdrum Police Chief Tomi McLean announced he had issued a citation to Christa Thompson after she refused to close down a yard sale during the coronavirus pandemic.
McLean said police first notified Thompson that she was violating the stay-at-home order on April 9. On April 10, an officer returned to the home and told the family to remove all signage about the yard sale after being told by the family that they were “sorting” the goods, not selling them. On April 13, police found a Craigslist advertisement stating the sale was still taking place. The officer issued a written warning and told the family the yard sale must end.
Police returned to the property on April 17 and found that “sales transactions were occurring while police were present.” They issued Thompson a misdemeanor citation that carries a punishment of up to $1,000 and six months in jail. Social media posts about Thompson’s citation sparked outrage, prompting McLean to explain the justification for the citation.
“The Rathdrum Police Department attempted to educate and warn prior to issuing a citation. Rathdrum PD has also received several complaints from the public in regard to the yard sale. This was a large non-essential yard sale that filled the entire front yard and spilled into the back yard as well. These yard sale items could be seen from Highway 41,” McLean wrote.
In an interview with the Idaho Freedom Foundation, Thomson said her father-in-law had recently died and that they needed to sell his belongings for extra money.
Peter Thompson, Christa Thompson’s husband, told the Coeur d’Alene Press that police were not clear about the legality of the yard sale. He said: “They told us we couldn’t have a yard sale, that it violated the governor’s order. I asked them if we could sort some things out on the lawn, and if it was OK to sell a few things to some people. They said, ‘Sure, as long as there’s no signs or advertising or anything like that. So we didn’t.’”
He also argued the family was not running the sale like a business because they were just sorting through the goods and selling them as they went. “We’re trying to raise six kids, too,” he added.
The Thompsons said they intend to fight the citation and continue their yard sales regardless of the police department’s response.
Edward Dindinger, a Boise-based attorney who expressed interest in defending the Thompsons, said he doesn’t believe the citation would stand in court.
“The fact that officers of this department took the time to seek out and arbitrarily cite this individual indicates to me the Rathdrum Police Department has far too much time on its hands and is perhaps itself ‘nonessential,'” he said.
“Maybe budgetary and/or staff cuts are appropriate so at least some members of the RPD can feel the pain this order is causing to ordinary, working-class Idahoans and join those of us in the productive sector on the front lines of reopening this great state,” Dindinger added.
As of Monday, Idaho had 1,672 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 44 related deaths.
