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Chrissy Polis arrested on disorderly conduct charge

Trans woman’s April beating at McDonald’s in Baltimore made national news

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A 23-year-old transgender woman who became the subject of international news in April when she was attacked and beaten in a hate crime at a McDonald’s restaurant outside Baltimore was arrested at her nearby apartment on Dec. 3 in an unrelated incident on a charge of disorderly conduct.

According to a report by the Baltimore Sun, police said Chrissy Lee Polis became disorderly and shouted obscenities at a police officer who arrived at her apartment after she called police to report she had been robbed of her cell phone, purse, and $800 in cash by an unidentified male suspect.

“She told police the man hit her in the head with an unknown object and stole her purse,” the Sun reported in a Dec. 7 story. “But the officer taking the report said Polis ‘gave several different variations’” of what happened and “’became very agitated.’”

Mark Scurti, an attorney representing Polis for a possible lawsuit against McDonald’s related to the April beating incident, said he would be meeting with Polis next week and his law firm would likely represent her in the disorderly conduct case, which is scheduled to go to trial in February.

“I’ve reviewed the facts of what happened and the state doesn’t have much of a case,” Scurti said. “But we’re expected to meet with her and at that time we’ll be retained to represent her in the matter…They’re ridiculous charges.”

Scurti declined to provide further details other than to say Polis feels the officer who responded to the scene after she was robbed treated her “very disrespectfully.”

He confirmed an account by the Sun that Polis was released on $7,500 bail but said he didn’t know who posted the $750 bond that secured her release.

The Sun reports that the arresting officer refers to Polis in his police report as “he” and uses Polis’s legal name Christopher Lee Polis.

“The officer wrote in charging documents that Polis screamed profanities and disrupted the neighborhood,” the Sun reported. “The officer said Polis let him into her apartment, which he described as having a mattress but no furniture.”

According to the Sun, the arresting officer said in a police charging document that Polis became highly agitated and “was causing a major disturbance in the neighborhood and would not lower his voice even though I was continually advising him to do so.’”

Polis continued to scream, “’You don’t know who I am. I will have you fired,’” the Sun quoted the officer as saying in his report.

Scurti told the Blade in September that Polis had been hospitalized twice after seeking treatment for post traumatic stress disorder that she suffered as a result of the beating at the McDonald’s.

Two teenage women were charged in the McDonald’s incident. Nineteen-year-old Teonna Brown pled guilty in August to first-degree assault and a hate crime in connection with the case. She was later sentenced to five years in prison. A 14-year old girl, whom authorities haven’t identified, was found “delinquent” in the case and committed to a secure juvenile facility, according to the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s office.

A video of the beating made by a McDonald’s employee with his cell phone created a national sensation when it went viral on the Internet. It showed the two young women punching and kicking Polis while she lay on the floor screaming for help. One of the girls was shown in the video dragging Polis across the floor by her hair.

Transgender activists in Maryland said the widespread reports of the incident and the graphic showing of the beating in the video led to a greater commitment by members of the Maryland Legislature and Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley to push for passage of a transgender non-discrimination bill in 2012.

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PHOTOS: Helen Hayes Awards

Gay Men’s Chorus, local drag artists have featured performance at ceremony

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Members of the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington as well as local drag artists joined hosts Mike Millan and Felicia Curry with other performers for a WorldPride dance number at the Helen Hayes Awards on Monday. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The 41st Helen Hayes Awards were held at The Anthem on Monday, May 19. Felicia Curry and Mike Millan served as the hosts.

A performance featuring members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and local drag artists was held at the end of the first act of the program to celebrate WorldPride 2025.

The annual awards ceremony honors achievement in D.C.-area theater productions and is produced by Theatre Washington.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals

Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade

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Deacon Maccubbin attends the 2024 Capital Pride Parade. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.

The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.

Laverne Cox (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.

Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.

Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”

“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”

“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.

The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.

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PHOTOS: D.C. Trans Pride

Schuyler Bailar gives keynote address

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D.C. Trans Pride 2025 was held at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on May 17. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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