With the words "I am here to break the law," a transgender woman walked into a women's restroom at the Florida State Capitol, igniting a legal battle in what's believed to be the first arrest under controversial new bathroom restrictions passed by several states, the AP reports. Marcy Rheintgen, a transgender college student, was arrested after entering a women's restroom at the Florida State Capitol on March 19. The state is one of at least 14 that have laws barring transgender women from entering certain women's restrooms, but is one of just two to criminalize the act. Rheintgen, 20, announced her intent to violate the 2023 law in letters sent to all 160 Florida lawmakers, the Tallahassee Democrat reports. She included a picture of herself so she'd be recognized, as well as the date and time she'd be there.
Capitol police were waiting for her when she arrived, and they said (while misgendering her) that she'd be given a trespass warning if she entered the bathroom. She walked in, washed her hands and prayed the rosary, and was ultimately arrested when she refused to leave. "People are telling me it's a legal test, like this is the first case that's being brought," Rheintgen says. "It's how they test the law. But I didn't do this to test the law. I did it because I was upset. I can't have any expectations for what's going to happen because this has never been prosecuted before. I'm horrified and scared." She is charged with misdemeanor trespassing and faces up to 60 days in jail, and she fears she could be placed in a men's jail, forced to cut her hair, or prevented from taking gender-affirming hormones.
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