\n\t\t\t\t\t\tNo charges will be filed against the six people who were arrested for using chalk to repaint the Pulse memorial crosswalk, according to Osceola-Orange State Attorney Monique Worrell.The rainbow stripes in the crosswalk were used to honor the 49 lives lost during the 2016 Pulse nightclub massacre. However, the memorial crosswalk on Orange Avenue was painted over overnight Aug. 21-22, 2025, as part of a directive from the Trump administration.Under the initiative, intersections and crosswalks were ordered to be free from distractions and political messages.Worrell said FDOT painted over the crosswalk without advance notice or safety data presented to justify the removal. Hours after the memorial’s removal, several people, including elected democratic leaders, used chalk to fill in the empty lines to create a rainbow.Worrell said FDOT officials removed the painted chalk twice before making any arrests. Crosswalk arrestsOn Aug. 29, 2025, the first protester to be arrested for alleged chalking at the Pulse memorial was 29-year-old Sebastian Suarez. However, no charges were filed against him. Worrell said she sent a detailed questionnaire to the trooper who made the arrest, but received no reply. On Aug. 31, 2025, three more protesters were arrested by state troopers among a large crowd. They were identified as Maryjane Kristena East, 25, Donavon Todd Short, 26, and Zane Ian Aparicio, 39. Worrell said multiple public officials were photographed chalking the same crosswalk in the presence of law enforcement, but were not arrested. Worrell called the arrests “selective enforcement.” On Nov. 23, 2025, two more were arrested by state troopers for allegedly applying chalk to the same crosswalk. FDOT submitted a cost document claiming $1,723 in combined labor and equipment to restore the crosswalk.Worrell explained that officials failed to provide any evidence that the defendants caused property damage. “This was a cleaning operation, not a damage remediation,” Worrell said. A detailed questionnaire was submitted to FDOT, which requested that they substantiate the figures, but they did not respond, according to Worrell. She said the evidence provided by officials didn’t come close to supporting the charges against the individuals arrested. Worrell also highlighted that the state’s decision to remove the crosswalk memorial was made without public process, safety justification and as a “coordinated state and federal campaign to remove LGBTQ+ imagery from public space.”\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tORLANDO, Fla. \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
No charges will be filed against the six people who were arrested for using chalk to repaint the Pulse memorial crosswalk, according to Osceola-Orange State Attorney Monique Worrell.<\/p>\n
The rainbow stripes in the crosswalk were used to honor the 49 lives lost during the 2016 Pulse nightclub massacre. <\/p>\n