ORLANDO, Fla. – The Florida Highway Patrol arrested three individuals on Sunday during a demonstration near the crosswalk outside the former Pulse nightclub.
A news release stated that a “Chalk For Pride” event was set to begin at 6 p.m. at South Orange Avenue and West Esther Street to oppose the removal of “Pride crosswalks” and the “misuse of laws that jeopardize our freedom of expression.”
Participants have gathered at the crosswalk daily for over a week since the Florida Department of Transportation removed the rainbow crosswalk at the intersection of S Orange Avenue and W Esther Street.
On Friday night, Orestes Sebastian Suarez, 29, was detained after allegedly using chalk to coat the bottom of his shoe before crossing the street, leaving chalk footprints. Suarez was charged with defacing a traffic device (valued at $1,000 or more) and was held with a $5,000 bond until a judge determined on Saturday afternoon that there was no probable cause for the arrest, leading to his release.
[VIDEO: New signs at Pulse, 1 arrested as Florida steps up rainbow fight]
Suarez’s attorney, Blake Simons, made a probable-cause challenge that the state made no objection to
In 2017, Orlando installed the rainbow crosswalk after gaining approval from FDOT, following an online petition signed by over 2,000 individuals to commemorate the victims and support the survivors of the Pulse shooting.
FDOT approved the crosswalk in 2017 as a tribute to the 49 people killed in the 2016 mass shooting at Pulse.
The crosswalk that has recently been painted over, colored in, and painted over again is now black, white, and under supervision by law enforcement.
[VIDEO: Law enforcement monitoring Pulse crosswalk]
When questioned about the crosswalk’s removal and similar actions across the state, Gov. DeSantis stated last week that the concern was not about the content, but he believed the situation with street art “got out of hand.”
[VIDEO: Gov. Ron DeSantis addresses controversy over rainbow crosswalk near Pulse]
“The legislature passed a change in law recently which said there’s no street art allowed,” DeSantis said. “The Department of Transportation put out guidance recently, a couple months ago, reminding everybody. And this has been addressed statewide.”
New signs appeared at the intersection overnight into Saturday that read, “DEFACING SIDEWALK PROHIBITED.”
News 6 reached out to the FHP to ask what charges the three people placed into handcuffs may face, but we have not heard back as of this writing.
This is a developing story. Check back with News 6 for the latest updates.
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