A protester remained jailed in Anchorage on Monday after his arrest Friday on accusations he painted a defamatory message about President Donald Trump on a sign at a military gate.
James Garrett Hermansen, 31, was one of hundreds who took part in peaceful protests and demonstrations during Friday's landmark meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage. The summit concluded with no comprehensive deal to end Russia's war in Ukraine.
The two leaders met at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson after flying in separately from Washington, D.C., and Moscow.
Hermansen was one of about two dozen pro-Ukraine protesters who gathered outside the base's Government Hill gate before the leaders landed. He was playing songs at the gathering on a guitar covered in stickers, including one that read, "This machine saves lives."
The graffiti appeared as the protest wound down.
Anchorage police officers working "POTUS detail" at the base's Government Hill gate during the event said they saw Hermansen walk up to the gate and paint "F--- Trump" on it, according to an initial charging document filed Saturday.
The red letters were about a foot tall, with one word stacked on top of the other.
A police report summarized in the charging document said officers saw a man later identified as Hermansen walk away from the sign and leave as a passenger in a sedan. The officers stopped the car and said they found Hermansen inside, his hands covered in red and with two permanent ink markers "on his person," the document said.
JBER officials wanted to press charges over the damage to the sign, which was valued at more than $750, according to the police report summary. He was arrested on a felony third-degree criminal mischief charge.
"APD is detaining me for graffiti," Hermansen wrote on his Facebook page Friday.
Widely shared images taken after the event showed law enforcement officers first blacking out the words and then removing them.
Hermansen remained in custody at the Anchorage Correctional Complex as of Monday, according to an public inmate release information database. His next court hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
A judge set his bail at $500 during a hearing Saturday, according to filings in the case. Hermansen entered a not guilty plea.
Hermansen's public defender couldn't immediately be reached for comment Monday.
His appears to be the only arrest made by Anchorage police tied to Friday's summit. The department in a statement Monday said they made one arrest, for vandalism, during eight protests, demonstrations and rallies around the municipality last week linked to the Trump-Putin meeting. Police estimated the various gatherings at 10 to 400 people.
Daily News photojournalist Bill Roth and reporter Tim Rockey contributed.
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