DALLAS — Dallas salon owner Shelley Luther, who made headlines in 2020 after refusing to close her business during COVID-19 lockdown orders, has suffered a brain aneurysm, her husband said in a Facebook post on Wednesday morning.
"We need some serious prayer. Shelley had a brain aneurysm last night and is having emergency surgery right now," husband Tim Georgeff said.
In an update on Wednesday evening, Georgeff said Wednesday's surgery was "unsuccessful" and that another procedure was expected on Friday.
In an update Friday evening, Georgeff said Luther underwent another surgery and doctors "feel confident they were able to repair the carotid artery properly."
In an update Sunday evening, Georgeff said that doctors had to do a procedure to "address some spasms the blood vessels in her brain were having."
"Her numbers continue to look pretty good as long as she stays sedated and medicated," Georgeff wrote on social media. "I’m hopeful tomorrow will be a better day."
Luther remains ventilated and sedated, according to her husband.
He said the next couple of weeks will be critical, as doctors will monitor Luther's progress and work to get the fluid drained from her brain.
Former Texas state senator and gubernatorial candidate Don Huffines tweeted about Luther's condition, saying "Friends, please pray for Shelley Luther."
Luther garnered attention during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 after she reopened her Dallas salon despite county and state orders that shut down non-essential businesses to prevent spreading of the illness.
During a court hearing, a state district judge found her in contempt of court and she was sentenced to seven days in jail. She was released from jail early following an order from the Texas Supreme Court.
Later in 2020, she ran as a Republican for a Texas Senate seat in District 30, which covers areas of North Texas such as Sherman, Denton, Weatherford and Stephenville.
She lost in a special runoff election in December 2020 to Drew Springer.
Nearly two years later, Luther also ran for Texas House District 62 in the Sherman area. She lost to incumbent Rep. Reggie Smith in the March 2022 primary.
During her 2022 campaign run, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that Luther faced criticism after tweeting that "Chinese students should be BANNED from attending all Texas universities. No more Communists."
"Texas Taxpayers should not be subsidizing the next generation of CCP leaders," Luther wrote in another tweet.
Her tweet was eventually deleted, and she later said she was referring to people from China who weren't currently living in the U.S.