(AP) — A defense attorney in California says his client doesn't deserve criminal charges for taking orders through Facebook to sell homemade ceviche.
San Joaquin County Deputy Public Defender Benjamin Hall said Monday that his client is part of a new, shared economy that's evolving through social media.
Prosecutors say Stockton resident Mariza Ruelas — a single mother of six — could spend up to one year in jail for using a Facebook forum to sell specialty dishes.
Hall said his client used a hobby to create community and bring people together around food.
Kelly Daniel of the local prosecutor's office, however, says Ruelas' enterprise was more than a hobby.
Daniel says she lacked the proper business license and health inspections that protect people from serious illness and even death.
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