Rebekah Massie had one more thing to say.

The 32-year-old resident of Surprise, Ariz., had already spoken about zoning changes during a city council meeting last month and signed up for one last public comment. This time, she had complaints about the city attorney’s salary.

Massie’s final appearance at the mic quickly turned contentious when Surprise Mayor Skip Hall interrupted her, accusing her of “attacking the city attorney personally” and violating a council policy. Massie countered that the mayor was violating her First Amendment rights.

“I could get up here and I could swear at you for three straight minutes, and it is protected speech by the Supreme Court,” she said.

The exchange crescendoed before Hall ordered a police officer to escort Massie out of the meeting. When she did not leave the lectern, the officer arrested her.

On Tuesday, Massie sued the city, the mayor and the officer who arrested her, formally alleging that they had violated her First Amendment rights during the Aug. 20 meeting. Her lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Arizona, requests that a judge temporarily order Surprise to halt its use of the policy Hall cited, which stipulates that comments during city council meetings “may not be used to lodge charges or complaints against” public officials.

“The whole thing kind of feels, and it still feels to this day, like an episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’ if I’m being honest,” Massie told The Washington Post. “Like, is this real life?”

She is being represented by attorneys from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free-speech group. Earlier this year, the organization sued the mayor of Eastpointe, Mich., alleging that she violated four residents’ First Amendment rights by refusing to let them speak at a city council meeting. Eastpointe ultimately nixed a policy that had banned comments directed at individual public council members.

Hall and the city attorney’s office in Surprise did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday. Attempts to reach the police officer were unsuccessful.

Massie was charged with third-degree trespassing. If she is convicted in court, Massie could face up to one month in jail and up to $500 in fines. Her arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 25. Massie’s defense attorney, Bret Royle, said Wednesday that it was unclear whether she would face further charges.

During the two years she has lived in Surprise, a city of about 160,000 people in Maricopa County, Massie has watched - and participated in - its political scene closely.

Massie, who said she is a Libertarian, runs The Grand Failure, a nonprofit focused on government accountability in Arizona, encouraging residents to contact officials about issues including traffic and public safety. She speaks at city council meetings often, at times delivering what she described as “very pointed criticisms and critiques and feedback about local politics.”

On Aug. 20, Massie commented several times throughout the meeting about proposed zoning changes in the city.

Ahead of the closed session, she was the only person who had requested to talk during the meeting’s “Call To The Public” section.

She alleged that the city attorney had violated state law while handling complaints about a candidate during the city’s elections, according to the lawsuit. Massie also suggested the attorney’s pay was too high. She referenced local reporting from 2023 that said his salary of around $266,000 was about $10,000 below that of the city attorney in nearby Scottsdale, Ariz., whose population of about 240,000 is about 50 percent bigger than that of Surprise.

As she continued to speak, Hall interrupted her and quoted the city council policy about complaints against officials during meetings.

“That’s all fine, well and good, but that’s a violation of my First Amendment rights,” Massie responded.

Hall then said “Well, this is your warning.”

“Warning for what?” Massie asked.

“A warning for attacking the city attorney personally.”

The back-and-forth continued until Hall said he would ask someone to escort Massie out of the meeting.

“Really, is that necessary?” Massie said. “In front of my 10-year-old daughter, you’re going to escort me out for expressing my First Amendment rights.”

“She can go with you,” Hall said. Massie replied: “I’m not leaving.”

The police officer arrested her shortly afterward. Massie’s daughter, who had been sitting in the third row behind the lectern listening to her mother’s remarks, ran after her.

Hall motioned to go into a closed session as Massie’s screams for the officer to let her go could be heard in the background, video of the meeting shows. A closed session was already listed on the meeting agenda for the council to receive legal advice from the city attorney, Robert Wingo, who was at the meeting and spoke about an item before Massie in the final public comment.

Soon, photos and videos of her arrest appeared in news outlets across the state and country.

“I would have never thought in a million years getting up and talking about something as benign as a salary of an appointed official would have ever garnered the attention or the response that it had,” Massie said.

In the weeks since her arrest, Massie has been explaining the events of the meeting to her daughter and two sons, who are 8 and 3 years old, trying to keep the details digestible for them. Recounting the incident, Massie said she felt “completely powerless,” especially when it came to her daughter, who watched her arrest.

“I wanted nothing more than to just take her home,” Massie said.