A 20-year-old trans woman was arrested at the Florida state Capitol for washing her hands in a women’s restroom in protest of the state’s anti-trans bathroom law. It may be the first arrest since the law passed in 2023.
Marcy Rheintgen never thought the police would actually arrest her, which is why she informed Florida lawmakers of her plan to enter the state’s Capitol and use the restroom, even including a photo of herself so they knew who to look for.
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“I know that you know in your heart that this law is wrong and unjust,” Rheintgen told the lawmakers, according to the Tampa Bay Times. “I know that you know in your heart that transgender people are human too, and you can’t arrest us away.”
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“I know that you know that I have dignity. That’s why I know that you won’t arrest me.”
Nevertheless, two cops met her at the restroom, but she decided to go in anyway. At first, they told her they would just give her a notice to appear before the judge. But they then reported she became “sassy” and indicated she may use the women’s bathroom again, so they arrested her.
“Everything that is politics seems very abstract and philosophical from far away,” Rheintgen said. “This is the first time it’s really affected me. I got arrested and I got sent to jail because of Gov. [Ron] DeSantis’ [R] policies — like that’s crazy, that’s crazy!”
Equality Florida Executive Director Nadine Smith slammed the state’s “absurd and dangerous” law.
“The arrest of Marcy Rheintgen is not about safety,” she said in a statement. “It’s about cruelty, humiliation, and the deliberate erosion of human dignity.”
“The true goal is intimidation,” she added. “If you can’t safely or legally use a restroom, your time in any public space is limited. That’s the point. These laws don’t protect anyone; they push transgender people out of everyday life, shrinking their freedom and making them vulnerable to harassment and arrest.”
The bathroom ban criminalizes anyone who uses a toilet or changing facility that doesn’t match the sex they were assigned at birth. It applies to public schools, universities, parks, prisons, and other government buildings but not to businesses and healthcare facilities.
The law only applies to facilities run by the state, but transgender and nonbinary Floridians have nonetheless been confronted, harassed, and intimidated in public restrooms located inside private businesses.
Last year, victims of the law spoke about the extreme measures they have taken to avoid restrooms, like neglecting to drink water and even peeing in bottles in their cars. Some said they even avoid going out in public altogether.
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