ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A judge in Orange County ordered that two men be released from jail on their own recognizance, about 24 hours after they were arrested for using chalk to cover the crosswalk outside the site of the former Pulse Nightclub.

James Houchins, 28, and Austin Trahan, 29, were arrested Sunday by Florida Highway Patrol, who charged them with felony criminal mischief.

The judge, however, reduced the severity of the charge after only finding probable cause for criminal mischief as a misdemeanor.

The arrests marked the latest chapter in an ongoing saga that has pitted a small contingent of protesters against the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and Florida Highway Patrol (FHP).

Earlier this year, employees with the FDOT stripped the crosswalk of its rainbow colors

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