TUCKER, Ga. — A shocking altercation outside a hair salon in DeKalb County was caught on surveillance video, and the salon owner is speaking out after the incident left her injured and shaken.
Shatoyia Crawford, the owner of You Are You Natural Hair Salon in Tucker, says the confrontation began over a $32 dispute and quickly spiraled out of control.
“My staff is telling me to lock the doors now… all over $32,” Crawford shared.
With more than 15 years of experience as a hairstylist, Crawford is no stranger to dealing with unhappy customers. But she says she’s never seen anything escalate like what happened on November 19.
It all started when a woman booked an appointment for her sons but later canceled. Normally, a late cancellation fee would apply, but Crawford says she decided to waive it after the woman left a voicemail asking to rebook.
However, when the day of the appointment arrived, things got heated. The woman called to say she was never contacted to confirm the new appointment time.
Crawford remembers explaining, “I told her, ‘Look, I get it. We didn’t charge you the first time, but unfortunately, if you can’t make your appointment today, we’ll have to charge you.’”
What happened next took her completely by surprise.
Within an hour of that tense phone call, the woman showed up at the salon.
“She stormed in here, taking off her stuff and getting loud,” Crawford recalled. Feeling unsafe, she asked the woman to leave.
Surveillance video then shows the woman outside approaching a man who was cleaning the windows, seemingly trying to take his window wiper. That’s when Crawford stepped outside, and the situation turned violent.
“She wouldn’t let me go, and eventually, she bit me on my face,” Crawford said. The bite was so severe it required 10 stitches and a trip to the hospital.
DeKalb County police responded to the scene, but no one was charged at the time. The woman claimed she acted in self-defense.
Crawford, however, isn’t letting the matter drop. She has since taken out a criminal trespassing order against the woman and filed a warrant application with the DeKalb County Magistrate Court. A court date has been set for February 10.
“I think people are just getting out of control with how they handle disputes,” Crawford said. “It’s just not worth it.”
When contacted, the woman involved in the incident declined to comment.
For now, Crawford says she’s focused on keeping her staff and salon safe as they move forward from the shocking ordeal.
