State attorney in Florida drops charges in 6 Pulse crosswalk chalking cases

ORLANDO, Fla. - Charges have been dropped against six people arrested last year for using chalk to protest the state's erasure of crosswalk colors memorializing the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting, with Orange-Osceola State Attorney Monique Worrell citing flimsy evidence and a selectively enforced statute in a Friday press conference.

Demonstrators began chalking the crosswalk on South Orange Avenue and Esther Street in multiple colors shortly after the Florida Department of Transportation removed its rainbow-colored design in August with no advance notice.

State officials insisted the removal boosted public safety by standardizing traffic markings statewide, but drew criticism for targeting designs and colors supporting the LGBTQ community. Undermining the safety claim, the crosswalk had been approved by FDOT in 2017, city and national data showed that colorful art makes crossing safer, and the state of Florida was unable to produce data supporting its contention after the Orlando Sentinel sued to get it.

The cases of the six arrested as part of the demonstrations - Orestes Suarez on Aug. 29; Maryjane East, Zane Aparicio and Donovan Short on Aug. 31; and James Houchins and Austin Trahan on Nov. 23 - languished in Orange County court for months as prosecutors considered the charges of defacing a traffic control device.

All had been arrested by Florida Highway Patrol troopers. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Worrell stopped short of calling the chalking arrests illegal, as future incidents would have to be reviewed case-by-case.

But the evidence in these cases just wasn't there, she added, citing the use of water-soluble chalk that left no lasting damage as part of a public protest.

"The evidence did not support these charges, and it didn't even come close," Worrell said. "This office will not use the power of prosecution as an instrument of political enforcement. Not against this community, not against anyone."

Worrell's prosecutors took more than 100 hours to complete their investigation, reviewing video footage while seeking reports and testimony from the troopers who collared the chalkers and state authorities who issued cost estimates for the supposed damage.

In Suarez's case, he was accused of crossing the walkway after chalking the soles of his shoes, which Worrell said left no footprints attributable to him while the trooper who arrested him did not fill out a questionnaire seeking more information about the arrest.

For the three arrested on Aug. 31, Worrell said a heavy downpour dissolved the chalk drawn onto the asphalt and sidewalks after they were taken into custody. The arresting trooper also could not explain why the three were selected for arrest despite others participating in the chalking without incident, which Worrell said "is the very definition of selective enforcement."

As for the Nov. 23 arrests, no records or photographs documenting the condition of the crosswalk before and after it was chalked were turned over to prosecutors, nor did the claim that Houchins removed a barricade stand up to scrutiny.

No one in Florida had been charged with criminal mischief for defacing a traffic control device until the August arrests. The FDOT had claimed that demonstrators, using water-soluble chalk, caused thousands of dollars in damage, amounting to a third-degree felony.

But many of those figures had not been backed by official documents reflecting a cost breakdown, and the paperwork that was produced involved "cleaning invoices, not repair records," Worrell said.

Even if it had, the case likely would have also raised First Amendment concerns in court.

"This conduct occurred at a recognized memorial site, used a medium - chalk - that is temporary and non-damaging and took place in a traditional public forum," Worrell said. "A prosecution that survived the damage and defacement arguments would almost certainly not survive constitutional scrutiny."

Houchins and Trahan were back at the crosswalk shortly after Worrell's announcement, which again had colored chalk filling in the spaces between the white lines. On the edge of the crosswalk read the words, "Day 246," counting the time since the crosswalk's design was removed.

Joshua Sinclair, Houchins' lawyer who appeared alongside his client, said the next step is seeking the arrest's expungement from the record, a legal option that's available now that the charges are dropped. Whether a civil suit will be filed is being discussed.

In the meantime, Houchins said the community's protest against the memorial crosswalk's removal will continue.

"We've been at it for 246 days," Houchins said. "Until they come back and paint it, we're not going to stop chalking."

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This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 5:15 PM.