‘There are so many reasons why someone is not wearing a mask’; Woman defends refusal to wear mask inside Lakeside store
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LAKESIDE, CO (KDVR) — A liquor store in Lakeside is receiving threatening phone calls after a woman recorded an incident inside the store Wednesday. The video has been shared thousands of times on Facebook and other social media platforms, showing Ruby Musso refusing to wear a mask, a violation of local health orders and store policy.
Musso says she entered the store with her mother to shop for beer when she was approached by staff who asked her to wear a mask. Musso claims she has a medical condition that causes her extreme panic and anxiety when she wears a mask.
“I just really tried to stand my ground with that because I feel like it’s really important. There are so many reasons why someone is not wearing a mask,” said Musso.
In the video, staff members repeatedly tell Musso to leave the store. She refuses and says she will wait for police to arrive. At one point, she refers to staff members as Nazis.
“It’s not my place to determine what is and is not a health risk. I have to obey the rules and the laws. For me, it’s an issue of an out of control customer creating a scene in my store,” said the store’s owner, Rufus Nagel.
Nagel says he did offer to bring items out to Musso if she did not want to wear a mask, but she refused. However, Musso claims customers were also out of control in the situation. The video shows a woman forcefully push her cart toward Musso before making an obscene hand gesture.
“I would never do that to somebody who is wearing a mask. I would never do that to somebody in any circumstance,” said Musso.
Nagel says the store received threatening phone calls Thursday after the video was shared on the incident.
“People calling us telling us we’re Nazis and destroying the American dream or something like that. Honestly, we’re just trying to do the best we can,” he said.
The latest guidance from the state health department encourages businesses to deny service to customers who refuse to wear masks.
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