Abel Tomlinson arrested after protesting in a tree

Everyone was all atweet yesterday afternoon over a guy protesting in a tree in front of the Washington County Courthouse. It didn’t take long for it to surface that the guy was former Congressional candidate Abel Tomlinson and that he had been arrested for the second time this year.

Tomlinson, who was already facing felony charges in connection with two counts of delivery of psilocybin mushrooms, now faces multiple new charges including disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and public intoxication, according to the intake report.

Abel Tomlinson

Here’s what everyone is reporting:

KFSM says Tomlinson was protesting his January arrest saying he had a right to drugs because of his religion.

NWAhomepage says Tomlinson parked his car in the Dickson/College intersection blocking traffic during his protest.

NWAOnline is reporting that Tomlinson removed half his clothing before falling part of the way down the tree while his mother and several police officers waited below.

Tomlinson is a former senator in the UA’s Associated Student Government and was arrested in 2006 after protesting an campus speech by Gary “Moses” Bowman.

It’s uncertain whether he still plans to run for Congress again in 2010. He ran in 2008 against Boozman but lost after getting nearly 58,850 votes, according to the Northwest Arkansas Times.