A single mom of 6 faces the up to a year in jail—after she was nabbed by cops for selling an illegal substance.
But Mariza Reulas wasn’t selling drugs: instead, all she did was sell a plate of her homemade ceviche.
Reulas was a member of a local Facebook group, called “209 Food Spot,” where members in California’s 209 area code would share recipes and organize potlucks. Occasionally, they would swap dishes—or, if they didn’t have a dish to share, buy a plate.
Last year, Reulas was contacted on the Facebook group by a fellow member, asking to buy a plate of her ceviche. That person wound up being an undercover cop in San Joaquin County, California, where Reulas lived.
Along with about a dozen other people from the Facebook group, Reulas was charged with two misdemeanors: operating a food facility without a permit, and engaging in business without a permit.
Reulas explained that the food group wasn’t run like a business—it was an informal exchange of food and ideas.”Somebody would be like, ‘Oh I don’t have anything to trade you but I would love to buy a plate,’ like they’d be off of work.”
Reulas added that she and her daughters cooked the ceviche for fun, because they had a free weekend—and that she wouldn’t become a business because she wasn’t really looking to earn money from a hobby.
However, her excuses didn’t sway the district attorney’s office.
“I don’t write the laws, I enforce them. And the legislature has felt that this is a crime,” explained the county’s deputy district attorney, when asked about why Reulas faced such draconian charges for such a minor offense.
Reulas’s case is headed to trial soon, and she faces up to a year in jail.
AAN Staff
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