HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Marlena Pavlos-Hackney, the Holland restaurant owner who refuses to close or limit her business so it follows COVID-19 restrictions, faces jail in addition to fines after a Thursday court hearing, according to the Holland Sentinel.
The judge ordered Pavlos-Hackney jailed until she agrees to follow the pandemic rules.
She was cited in December for operating Marlena’s Bistro and Pizzeria on Lincoln Avenue despite state-ordered limits on restaurants and bars.
The restaurant’s license was suspended in January when she continued refusing to adapt to the temporary restaurant and bar limits.
State and Allegan County officials testified at a Feb. 1 hearing that she wasn’t requiring masks or social distancing.
During Thursday’s hearing, the judge noted at least one case of COVID-19 appears to have been traced to the restaurant. Allegan County Health officials testified the person reporting dining at the restaurant on Feb. 27, 2021, and became sick within two days. Allegan County health officials have since issued an alert for anyone who dined at Marlena’s on that date.
The county is offering free drive-through COVID-19 tests from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 6. People do not need to have symptoms to be tested and they don’t need a lab slip. People under the age of 18 do need to have a parent or guardian’s permission.
