It’s been nearly a year since her arrest, but Shailene Woodley can recall the events of Monday, Oct. 10, 2016, as if they happened yesterday.
“I was strip-searched. Like get naked, turn over, spread your butt cheeks, bend over,” the “Big Little Lies” star told Marie Claire UK. “They were looking for drugs in my ass.”
The 25-year-old actress was arrested for criminal trespassing in Sioux County, North Dakota, last fall after she and hundreds protested at a construction site for the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline project in North Dakota, which was built atop sacred grounds of the Sioux tribe. She was later taken to the Morton County jail.
“When you’re in a jail cell and they shut that door, you realize no one can save you. If there’s a fire and they decide not to open the door, you’ll die. You are a caged animal,” Woodley described.
Though she initially pleaded not guilty, Woodley reached a plea deal in March that would not include jail time. She signed a court document in which she pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct and to serve one year of unsupervised probation, in addition to surrendering a $500 bond.
As for her mugshot, Woodley wishes she could have had a second take.
“I wish I’d known that this was going to be as public as it was. I would have made, like, a face,” the actress said during a February appearance on “The Late Show.” “I’m just looking at the person, like, ‘Are you kidding me right now?’”