Despite her lengthy rant about "Common Law," some nondescript CDC guidelines, and her staunch religious faith, an Austin, Texas area woman was arrested and cited with assault after she repeatedly harassed Nordstrom Rack employees asking her to follow company policy and wear a mask in the store.
Although her treatment of the clothing store employee occurred behind closed doors, the woman's final, raving speech before being handcuffed was captured by a police officer's bodycam, a video clip that has since gone viral.
As one Twitter user aptly put it, the woman's protests to police sounded more like "psychotic white grievance Madlibs."
"I don't have to identify myself...it's called Common Law, you should read up on it. I do not, okay?"
"I am a woman of God. This is my right as much as it is yours. This is my land as much as it is yours."
"I did not sign up for this. I am a Christian woman of God."
"And you are not going to put your disgusting rules on me that are false and not true."
"I will not have it. You understand that?"
Police were unfamiliar with the "woman of God" exemption for all civil and criminal laws.
Following those rambling claims, all said with an absurd amount of conviction, a police officer beside the woman stepped toward her and began to place handcuffs on her.
You can see video here:
According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the woman was identified as Kara Bell, who just so happens to be running for a seat on the local school board.
Police reports cited by the Star-Telegram concluded Bell entered the store without a mask on.
When employees told her she had to wear a mask or leave the building, she shoved an employee and forced her way into a dressing room, where she called Nordstrom's corporate offices to complain. It was then that police were called.
The police report stated two witnesses confirmed those details.
In a longer clip of the police interaction with Bell, the employee can even be heard repeating her claims about being shoved.
Bell's altercation with store employees illustrated the difficulties mismatched mask policy can produce. Texas Governor Greg Abbott did lift the state's mask mandate back in March, but he also allowed businesses to continue requiring patrons to wear them if desired.
People on Twitter who saw the clip were feeling all sorts of ways. On one hand, they were outraged by the woman's anti-mask convictions and horrible attitude.
But they were also very entertained by her approach to debate.
Bell's citation for assault is a Class C misdemeanor, and carries with it a $500 fine.
Only time will tell what viral internet infamy means for Bell's school board campaign.
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