Abortion-rights activist arrested for incident following ceremony for pregnancy center

A woman who protested a groundbreaking for a pregnancy center in Lakeland was later arrested, accused of battery on a law-enforcement officer for throwing women’s underwear toward him.

Options for Women held the ceremony Tuesday afternoon at its property at 4504 S. Florida Ave., where it plans to construct a building to replace a portable structure. The center is a faith-based nonprofit that provides pregnancy testing and ultrasounds as an alternative to an adjacent clinic that performs abortions.

A Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputy, Capt. Billy Strickland, attended the event as a representative of the agency. PCSO spokesperson Scott Wilder said that Options for Women had invited Sheriff Grady Judd, who was unable to attend and sent Strickland in his absence.

After the ceremony had ended, Strickland was standing on a low stage under a temporary tent with Florida Rep. Jennifer Canady, R-Lakeland, who had spoken at the event. According to the arrest affidavit, they had their backs turned to the Lakeland Women’s Health Center, where Bonnie Patterson-James and other advocates for abortion rights had gathered.

Related: Two Polk residents arrested in Tallahassee during protest of six-week abortion bill

Also: Abortion-rights advocates stage 'Occupy Polk' event in Lakeland, prepare for petition drive

The PSCO report offers this description: As Strickland and Canady posed for a photo, Patterson-James stood on the fence line of the boundary between the two properties. She threw a rolled-up pair of women’s panties held together by a sticker toward the stage, and it hit Strickland on the right leg.

When Strickland turned to see where the item had come from, Patterson-James, 55, looked at him and said, “That did not hit you!”

Strickland was dressed in his green uniform with patches on each arm, making it obvious he was a sheriff’s deputy, the affidavit said.

Patterson-James dropped to the ground and “merged in with other protesters out of sight.” Strickland went to the clinic property and asked to speak to the person who threw the underwear, and someone present called out, “Bonnie, they want to talk to you.”

Strickland identified Patterson-James from her brightly dyed red hair, pink shirt and red-framed sunglasses. A well-known local advocate for abortion rights, she had stood behind the fence throughout the Options for Women ceremony, calling out criticisms of the center and the anti-abortion movement as Canady and others spoke to an invited audience.

Strickland approached Patterson-James, who refused to identify herself, the affidavit said. When told she was going to be arrested, she stepped back into a group of people on the clinic property and said that she would not be arrested. She admitted to throwing the item but said she didn’t think it had hit Strickland.

The deputy eventually identified Patterson-James, a Lakeland resident, but did not arrest her at the scene. On Thursday, a deputy pulled over her vehicle on the Polk Parkway for failing to signal while merging, PCSO said. The deputy learned of an outstanding warrant and arrested Patterson-James on two counts: battery on a law-enforcement officer, a third-degree felony, and resisting arrest without violence, a first-degree misdemeanor.

The Options for Women property is in Lakeland, and two Lakeland Police Department officers attended Tuesday’s event. They were on extra-duty detail, LPD spokesperson Robin Tillett said.

PCSO deputies have the authority to make arrests for crimes that occur anywhere in the county, spokesperson Scott Wilder said.

Patterson-James is the founder of Lakeland Inclusive Diverse Voice, an organization that has coordinated demonstrations for abortion rights. She traveled to Tallahassee during the legislative session to protest a bill, co-sponsored by Canady, that would bar most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis promptly signed the bill into law, though its validity hinges upon a ruling of the state Supreme Court, which is reviewing legal challenges to a law passed last year setting the abortion threshold at 15 weeks.

More: Lakeland pregnancy center to construct new building beside clinic that performs abortions

The Florida National Organization for Women issued a press release Friday condemning the Polk County Sheriff’s Office for the arrest. It said that a video taken on Tuesday captured Strickland saying the thrown underwear bounced and then hit his leg.

In a video posted on TikTok by Swan City Clinic Defenders, a group of volunteers at the Lakeland facility, Strickland said the item hit him on the back of the leg.

“No footage of the alleged battery is known to exist, despite multiple people seen filming.” Florida NOW said in the release.

The organization noted that Canady, who was honored with an award at Tuesday’s ceremony, requested $1 million for the Options for Women expansion in this year’s state budget. The version that passed allots $500,000 for the private organization, though that is subject to a potential veto by DeSantis.

The abortion bill that Canady co-sponsored also provides $25 million for a network of pregnancy centers that includes Options for Women.

The Florida NOW release claimed that the Clinic Defenders have reported several instances of alleged assaults against volunteers, one of them a minor, by anti-abortion protestors, who regularly demonstrate outside the clinic. It said that LPD has refused to make arrests despite knowing the suspects’ identities and despite multiple witness reports and photos of injuries.

Tillett previously discussed an incident from May 3 with The Ledger, saying LPD investigated claims of assault, trespassing and theft at the clinic by anti-abortion protesters and did not find sufficient evidence to make an arrest.

Florida NOW, of which Patterson-James is a member, suggested selective enforcement of laws is taking place.

“Why are Polk County Clinic Defenders being jailed for tossing an ounce of fabric that allegedly touched an officer's leg, while a child who was actually assaulted and sustained injuries was ignored?,” Debbie DeLand, President of Florida NOW, said in the release. “We believe Patterson-James’ arrest was not only unjustified, but also politically motivated. If Representative Canady is not behind the targeting and arrest of this pro-abortion activist, she should be speaking out against it as well as speaking up for the child denied PCSO protection.”

Canady said the Florida NOW statement was "as ridiculous as it is false."

"Here are some facts — you have every right to voice your opinion, but you have no right to assault a law enforcement officer," Canady said in a text message. "Here in Polk County you can expect criminal activity to be met with criminal charges. I’m thankful that we have a Sheriff and law enforcement leaders in this region who enforce the rule of law. Our whole community is grateful for their service."

Wilder said he had no comment about the specific claims in the Florida NOW release.

“The Polk County Sheriff’s Office supports peaceful protest across the board,” Wilder said in an email. “When either side of an issue begins throwing things at others, the protest is no longer peaceful. We will take enforcement action when that occurs in our jurisdiction and in our presence. If someone unlawfully throws something and it hits a law enforcement officer in our presence, we will take enforcement action every time.”

Patterson-James was released on bond early Friday morning.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Activist arrested for incident following ceremony at pregnancy center