A 61-year-old woman who wore a phallic costume to a “No Kings” protest in Fairhope on Saturday was arrested after being held down by police officers.
Jeana Renea Gamble, 61, was charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. Video of the arrest posted to Bluesky showed three officers holding her to the ground amid criticism from spectators. The video went viral over the weekend and led to widespread criticism of the officers.
The Fairhope Police Department said in court documents that they received a complaint about the costume. In a statement posted to Facebook on Monday, the department said an officer “observed an individual in a phallic costume near the Baldwin Square Shopping Center.”
“The officer approached the woman and requested that she remove the costume, which is deemed obscene in a public setting; however, she refused to comply,” the statement said.
The rally was one of over a dozen protests happening in the state on Saturday. The protests were peaceful with no major incidents reported.
A message seeking additional comment was left with the Fairhope Police Department Monday. Attempts to find contact information for Gamble were not immediately successful.
Johnston Tisdale, director of Indivisible Baldwin County, the organization that sponsored the protest, said in a statement Monday Gamble’s arrest violates the First Amendment.
“Ms. Gamble was peacefully expressing her point of view on Saturday. Her violent arrest for expressing herself in ways the police found rude is indefensible, morally and legally,” Tisdale said. “Public officials must take seriously their duty to uphold the First Amendment. Their complete failure to do so in this situation runs against the free expression values that created the city of Fairhope and against the liberty guarantees enshrined in Alabama law and the United States Constitution.
Resisting arrest is Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of $3,000. Disorderly conduct is a Class C misdemeanor punishable by up to three months in jail and a fine of $500.
According to court documents, Gamble is set to make an appearance in Fairhope Municipal Court on Nov. 5.
This story was originally produced by Alabama Reflector, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Florida Phoenix, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
