A North Carolina man who reportedly identified as female was arrested after getting “completely naked” in front of a minor inside a women’s bathroom at a Planet Fitness.
Christoper Allen Miller, 38, was arrested on April 4 after a Planet Fitness member in Gastonia called the police, reporting that he was walking around exposing himself to women.
The dispatcher asks if “that man still there?”
“Yeah, he is still in the bathroom,“ the caller said. ”It’s a man but he says he identifies as a woman, and he won’t leave the restroom. But he is just walking around showing us his [expletive] and he won’t leave.”
“And what’s he wearing?” the dispatcher asked.
“Nothing, literally nothing.”
“OK, so he is completely naked?” the dispatcher asked.
“He is completely naked,” the caller said.
According to the outlet, citing a court document, Mr. Miller exposed himself in front of a 17-year-old minor for the purpose of “arousing and gratifying the defendant’s sexual desire.”
He also allegedly asked the teen to rub lotion and join him in the shower.
After the police arrived, they arrested Mr. Miller “on-view” at 7:55 p.m., according to jail records, which show that he was charged with felony indecent exposure.
The Planet Fitness in question was located at 202 S New Hope Road in Gastonia, North Carolina.
Planet Fitness allows transgender members to access whichever sex-separated bathroom facility is consistent with their “self-reported gender identity.”
After the incident, a female gym member, Betty Brice, shared her reaction with WSCOTV.
“I think a woman should be able to go into a woman’s bathroom without a man coming in saying he’s transgender,” she said, reportedly.
Mr. Miller’s mugshot showed him as a white man with a light-colored beard and dreadlocks.
“All members, including transgender members, may use Planet Fitness® locker room facilities, bathrooms, showers, and all other facilities/programs separated by sex based on their self-reported gender identity,” the policy reads.
In a statement to multiple media outlets, a Planet Fitness spokesperson said that safety is a priority for the company, which has “zero tolerance for harassment.”
“At Planet Fitness, the safety of our employees and members is our top priority, and we have zero tolerance for harassment of any kind in our clubs. We took immediate action to ensure the safety of club members, including notifying and working with law enforcement,” said McCall Gosselin, chief corporate affairs officer at Planet Fitness.
Planet Fitness recently made headlines for defending a person “with a penis” who was photographed shaving in the women’s locker room.
The company revoked 67-year-old Patricia Silva’s membership after she expressed discomfort about the situation in a viral video in which she revealed her membership had been canceled for taking the photo.
In her video, Ms. Silva said that the man refused to leave the women’s locker room, claiming the privilege of being LGBT. She said she complained to the front desk.
Planet Fitness describes itself as a judgment-free zone, and states that “private information such as a person’s identification as transgender or nonbinary and any medical information must be treated as confidential.”
This incident prompted nearly 50 false bomb threats at a number of Planet Fitness locations in 11 states, starting with the Fairbanks, Alaska, location.
The threats forced evacuations, but no bombs were found.
The decision by Planet Fitness to terminate Ms. Silva’s membership quickly spread across social media platforms, prompting widespread calls for boycotting the fitness franchise.
Following these events, Planet Fitness experienced a significant financial setback, losing $400 million in just five days as its market value dropped from $5.3 billion on March 14 to $4.9 billion on March 19.
Mr. Miller’s bond was set at $25,000.
