[ad_1]
Three people arrested late Sunday evening for using chalk to protest the state’s removal of the Pulse rainbow crosswalk were released from jail Monday pending charges from the state attorney’s office.
Maryjane East, 25, Donavon Short, 26, and Zane Aparicio, 39, were arrested and booked by Florida Highway Patrol on Sunday night outside the Pulse memorial in Orlando and charged with defacing a traffic device — a statute that typically covers electronic traffic devices such as lights and signals.
The arrests come after Orestes Sebastian Suarez was arrested Friday night by Florida Highway Patrol on the same charge. Suarez was also released shortly after he was booked after the judge found no probable cause he committed the crime.
However, a judge on Monday did find probable cause for the three latest arrests. However, there were no charges pending after they were released on their own recognizance, and any further charges would need to be brought forward by Orange-Osceola State Attorney Monique Worrell.
Blake Simons, the attorney representing both Suarez and the three arrested late Sunday night, said FHP’s arrest report from Sunday was much more detailed and included allegations of damage of over $1,000.
“I would argue water-soluble chalk that washes away while you’re being arrested doesn’t amount to over $1,000 worth of damage,” Simons said after appearing before the judge Monday morning.
FHP and Orlando Police Department have been stationed at the Dunkin Donuts next to the Pulse memorial for over a week, telling protesters they won’t be arrested if they are not impeding traffic.
Protests initially erupted last month after the Florida Department of Transportation painted over the rainbow crosswalk, meant to memorialize the 49 victims of the 2016 mass shooting, in the middle of the night. Since then, the department has repainted it at least once more due to ongoing protestors coloring the crosswalk with rainbow paint and chalk.
FDOT has ordered other cities to remove rainbows and other painted designs from their roads.
DeSantis has defended the state’s actions, saying it’s not political and cited a new state law — a claim lawmakers refute — and that the designs “jeopardize both driver and pedestrian safety.”
But an Orlando Sentinel analysis of city traffic data shows the opposite. The city’s many decorative crosswalks and murals in Downtown Orlando, including the crosswalk by Pulse, have helped reduce crashes with pedestrians despite increased foot traffic.
In a statement, FDOT said it conducted a “months-long” update of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices with input from representatives of state and local governments. The update included a prohibition on “non-uniform” traffic control devices and explicitly “prohibits the application of pavement or surface art on travel lanes, paved shoulders, intersections, crosswalks or sidewalks.”
The four arrested protesters are part of a larger, coordinated effort to maintain protests against the state’s removal of the rainbow crosswalk. On Reddit’s Orlando forum, one person — who said they had been at the crosswalk all of last week — claimed the three intended to be arrested for the cameras.
“Do not worry, we planned this for live cameras to see. Now we get to see what a judge says about them violating our first amendment rights, and we hope it leads to us being allowed to continue the chalk,” wrote Reed, who asked to only be identified by their first name.
Following the arrest of the three protesters at the Pulse memorial Sunday night, the remaining protesters marched to Orlando City Hall downtown where they wrote messages in chalk.
“You can’t erase us,” one chalk message read.
“We’re just getting started,” read another.
Protesters returned to city hall Monday afternoon.
[ad_2]