Six months ago, Fairhope police tackled Renea Gamble to the ground after she refused to remove an inflatable penis costume to a No Kings rally while displaying the sign “No Dick-taters!”
Wednesday, Gamble walked out of a hearing on the related charges an acquitted woman.
“Free speech wins,” Gamble exclaimed upon exiting the building. “It doesn’t end at the city limits.”
Fairhope police had charged Gamble with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. According to reports from people who viewed the trial, the city argued that officers had asked Gamble to remove the costume for safety concerns and only arrested her because she refused to cooperate.
That’s contradicted by body cam footage of the arresting officer, who could be heard telling Gamble that her costume would not be tolerated in a town that “has values.”
“That’s all he talked about when he was confronting her was ‘I am not going to put up with this in my town,” Gespass said. “He said nothing about her causing any problems with traffic. Certainly if you watch the video, he is not deescalating anything. He approached her aggressively.”
The city also questioned Gamble’s first amendment right to wear the costume, which she purchased from a Spirit Halloween store in Foley. The prosecution also apparently construed a cash withdrawal by Gamble’s husband Larry Fletcher before the protest as bail money, showing intent to cause a provocation.
Fletcher testified that he always carries money in he is arrested.
The case drew national attention, including from late-night host Stephen Colbert.
Supporters of Gamble gathered at the courthouse Wednesday with signs of support, including more innuendo and euphemisms.
