'Crippled girl' gag: Crime or free speech issue?

Forest Thomer walked up to a small group of people at a May 23 Party in the Park event, pointed to a slight, wheelchair-bound woman next to him and asked, Do you want to laugh at the crippled girl?

The politically incorrect question wasnt intended to demean Ally Bruener and her battle with congenital muscular dystrophy but rather to promote her next gig as a comedian. After Thomer asked the question, Bruener wheeled her chair up to the group, told them a joke and where she next was performing.

Thomers guerrilla marketing, though, erupted into such a to do that he was arrested by Cincinnati police and charged with disorderly conduct, punishable by up to 30 days in jail. Now, Thomer (pronounced Toe-mer) and Bruener insist they are in a free speech fight.

The police are trying to censor us. Theyre trying to tell us how we can or cant promote my comedy, Bruener said from her Alexandria home.

I dont know when it became a bad thing for just saying words, said Thomer, 25, of Cold Spring.

Bruener, 23, wants to break down the stigma the word cripple connotes and engage those who think because her body confines her to a wheelchair shes mentally deficient.

They assume I have no common sense, she said. Theres a lot of harsh stereotypes against people with disabilities.

After graduating from Campbell County High, Bruener received an academic scholarship to the University of Louisville. She dropped out seeking a career in comedy. Shes appeared in several clubs and comedy events in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, making her disability part of her act.

I want to open the door to the conversation, Bruener said. People dont expect the crippled girl to talk about it. When I bring it to light, it makes me more comfortable.

Her self-mocking website is replete with references to and jokes about muscular dystrophy, a degenerative disease that usually affects voluntary muscles, and her life in a wheelchair.

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'Crippled girl' gag: Crime or free speech issue?