Hairstylist Faces 2nd-Degree Assault Charge After Dragging 15-Year-Old Client Across Salon Floor

Mar. 15, 2025

Jayla Cunningham.Photo:Jayla Amora/Instagram

Jayla Amora/Instagram

A Maryland hairstylist is facing a charge of second-degree assault after video captured her dragging a teenage client across a salon floor for allegedly attempting to walk out of her appointment without paying.

“I’m not f—— playing. You just tried to f—— run. You lucky I ain’t beat the s— out you," she then continues, as the video footage later shows Cunningham cutting the weave she had installed out of the teenager’s hair.

The hairstylist said that the service, including the weave, was $150, and she claimed that if she hadn’t dragged the client back inside, she would not have paid for it. The teen’s mom, however, told FOX 5 that her daughter had accidentally sent the money to the wrong account and was trying to figure out how to remedy the error.

“I feel like if I didn’t do that, she would have been gone,” the stylist added, “and I would have just never been paid.”

Cunningham told FOX 5 she has a witness who will back up her claims. She added that she has since received death threats after the video went viral and had to move the location of her salon.

The client’s family, meanwhile, has hired Jackson and Associates, a law firm in Upper Marlboro, to represent the teenager, according to FOX 5. Attorney De’Aja Thompson called the video of the alleged assault “horrendous” in an interview with the outlet.

In a statement to PEOPLE, Thompson added: “This appalling incident involving a minor child and an adult stylist was most certainly avoidable. Unfortunately, this case is just one depiction of the reality of what happens when citizens take the law into their own hands. As a result, in this case, a young girl suffered physical and psychological injuries for what ultimately turned out to be a mistake, and another young lady is now facing criminal charges that could have larger implications.”

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“It’s viral. It’s all over the country,” she added of the alleged assault. When asked how her daughter is handling the situation emotionally, the concerned mom said, “Emotionally, not good. Not good at all.”

In an update shared on her Instagram Stories on March 8, Cunningham told her followers, “I’m okay yall thank yall love yall [sic].”

source: people.com