Arrest Warrant Issued After Wife Dismisses Mask From Texas Bank

GALVESTON, Texas – An arrest warrant was issued for a woman who refused to wear a mask at a Texas bank and said to a police officer, “What are you going to do, arrest me?”

Police have issued an arrest warrant against Terry Wright, 65, of Grants Pass, Oregon. Thursday’s incident at a Bank of America in Galveston was captured by the officer’s body camera, The Galveston County Daily News reports.

Police say they have obtained an arrest warrant for opposing arrest and charges of criminal offenses.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Wednesday ended orders from people to wear face masks in public places, stating that companies had to decide for themselves what COVID-19 precautions to take against their properties. Many companies have enforced their own mask rules.

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Police said a bank manager called the police after Wright refused to wear a mask while inside, and then refused to leave the building when asked.

Police released the video footage from the officer’s body camera on Friday. In the video, Wright can be seen in the middle of the bank’s lobby, surrounded by other customers, all wearing masks.

Wright told the officer she had come to the bank to withdraw money. The officer asked her to go outside or put on a mask. She declined.

“What are you going to do, arrest me?” she asked.

He replied, “Yes, for entering buildings.” And then she said, “That’s hilarious.”

Wright then told the officer that the law said she should not wear a mask. When the officer took out handcuffs, she withdrew and started walking to the door. The officer stopped her and forced her to the ground. After being handcuffed, she complained that her foot had been injured.

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“Police brutality here folks,” she told the other customers at the bank. Answers of “no” and “no, it is not” were heard.

Police said she sustained minor injuries in the fight and was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Wright told The Washington Post that she never covered her face in stores, even when the mandate was statewide. She said she was at a RV park across the street from Galveston Bay in Hitchcock, Texas.

She told the newspaper she had been ‘attacked’ and compared the mask requirements to the way Nazi Germany forced Jewish people to identify with a Star of David. She also said she believed in a “plan” in reference to a documentary-style video in which an anti-vaccine activist promotes a series of questionable, false and potentially dangerous coronavirus theories.