An Atmore woman who drew national attention last year after her school threatened to fine her for wearing a traditional eagle feather at graduation is now facing criminal charges connected to the same school.
Chelsey Ramer, 19, a member of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, was arrested in early September along with Lawrence Ramer, also 19 and from Atmore, on charges of third-degree burglary, third-degree theft of property, and second-degree criminal mischief. Bond for both was set at $10,000, according to a report from the Atmore Advance. A 17-year-old who was with the pair at the time of their arrest was also charged in connection with the incident.
The charges stem from an accusation that the Ramers took softball bats and balls belonging to Escambia Academy, the private school Chelsey Ramer had graduated from the year before. The alleged theft is said to have occurred in late July, with warrants issued only after the school’s board of directors formally voted to pursue charges. As a condition of their bond, an Escambia County district judge ordered both Ramers to stay off Escambia Academy’s campus while the case moves forward.
The arrest brings renewed attention to a case that put Atmore in national headlines the previous year. During her 2013 graduation ceremony at Escambia Academy, Ramer wore an eagle feather in her hair as an expression of pride in her Native American heritage. School administrators had warned beforehand that doing so would violate the school’s graduation dress code, but Ramer wore the feather anyway. The school responded by fining her $1,000, a decision that drew coverage from national outlets and support from Native American advocacy groups, who argued the feather carried deep spiritual and cultural significance and shouldn’t have been treated as a dress-code violation.
At the time, Ramer’s mother, Debra, publicly defended her daughter’s choice and signaled the family was prepared to pay the fine if that’s what it took to secure Ramer’s diploma and transcripts. Ultimately, school officials chose not to collect the fine after the controversy drew widespread attention.
More than a year later, the relationship between Ramer and her alma mater has taken a very different turn, with the school now the alleged victim in a criminal case rather than the source of a dress-code dispute. The case remains open in Escambia County, where the Ramers and the juvenile co-defendant await further court proceedings on the burglary, theft, and criminal mischief charges.
The Poarch Band of Creek Indians, based in Atmore, has a long history of advocating for tribal members’ rights to express their cultural and religious heritage in public settings, an issue that continues to surface periodically in schools and other institutions across the region.