American Comedy Star Lea DeLaria Reveals She Was Literally Arrested For Being Gay In Public: Here’s Her Story

Lea DeLaria has spent decades making people laugh, but her origin story is anything but a joke. In a recent conversation, she revealed she was literally arrested for being gay in public, and the way the charges were described sounds so ridiculous it almost feels fake.

Host Caleb Heron asked her straight up about the “open and notorious homosexuality” arrest back when it happened in Missouri, and then, even more specifically, in Illinois. DeLaria explained that Illinois was a hand-holding situation, while Missouri turned into more than that, with her and her girlfriend by a lake in Columbia, near Stephen’s College, where her best friend went to school.

The part that really twists the knife is that DeLaria wasn’t even a student, yet she somehow made herself feel like one anyway.

Lea DeLaria has finally come out to tell her story

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That’s when Caleb Heron’s confusion kicks in, because “open and notorious homosexuality” sounds like a made-up charge until DeLaria says it happened in Illinois too.

Host Caleb Heron kicked off the conversation by asking directly: "You got arrested for open and notorious homosexuality in my home state, Missouri?" DeLaria didn't hesitate. "And in Illinois," she confirmed.

Heron, like most listeners, was immediately confused. "What the hell does that mean? So what happened, you were just a lesbian in public?"

It's a fair question, because to anyone unfamiliar with how anti-LGBTQ+ laws worked back then, the charge sounds absurd. And it was, but it was also very real.

DeLaria explained that in Illinois, she was arrested simply for holding hands with another woman. In Missouri, however, things went further. "I was doing a whole lot more than holding her hand. We were by a lake, that's all I'm gonna say," she admitted, which immediately sent both her and Heron into laughter.

The incident happened in Columbia, where her best friend attended Stephen's College. DeLaria wasn't a student herself, having left college after a brief stint because she found it boring. Instead, she spent nearly every weekend visiting her friend, though not exactly to hang out.

"So my best friend went to Stephen's College, right, I did not go to college. I went for five minutes and left. It was boring. So what I would do is I would go visit her basically every weekend," she explained. \

Then came the punchline: "So I basically was a student at Stephen's College. I mean, if you are what you eat." Heron responded with a laugh: "Yeah, I bet you were really popular at Stephen's College."

DeLaria didn't hold back. "I gobbled those girls down, man, it was so much fun," she continued, "which is why I was there every weekend. Every weekend to visit my best friend and she never saw me."

DeLaria played the role of "Big Boo" in the hit Netflix series, "Orange Is the New Black."

Kristina Bumphrey/Getty Images

DeLaria then clarifies the difference between states, holding hands in Illinois versus the “by a lake” situation in Missouri, and the whole thing turns into instant, stunned laughter.

This also echoes the Fox News anchor’s report on Trump facing a deadline over Epstein documents.

The setting matters, because this all ties back to Columbia and Stephen’s College, where her best friend attended while DeLaria basically treated weekend visits like her real campus.

She joked that she'd arrive, drop off her suitcase, say goodbye to her friend, and then essentially disappear for the rest of the visit.

The arrest happened during one of those weekends when she and another woman were by a lake. Heron asked if she was actually taken to jail, and DeLaria confirmed she was. "Yeah, I was bailed out the next morning. It was not a crime that you got like a major fine for. I didn't have to go in front of a judge or anything like that," she said.

Attempts to find official records of the arrests have been unsuccessful. The Illinois courthouse where her case would have been documented burned down, erasing any trace of the incident.

She also revealed that she and the woman she was with were arrested together but placed in separate cells. The reason? Authorities were worried they'd continue what got them arrested in the first place, even behind bars.

Speaking about it on another occasion, DeLaria added, "We were so busted. I spent the night in jail, and they separated us too because they were afraid we were gonna f**k in the jail, I guess."

And when she admits she’d drop off her suitcase, say goodbye, and then disappear for the rest of the visit, you start to see how that “student” energy got her caught up in the first place.

Final Thoughts

What the 67-year-old comedy star experienced wasn't ancient history; it was within her lifetime, and laws like the ones she was arrested under existed in multiple states across the country.

Her willingness to share these experiences with humor and honesty keeps those memories alive and underscores how much progress has been made, while also reminding us how fragile those gains can be.

Have you heard stories like this from older LGBTQ+ people in your life? Share with us in the comments.

Even when she wasn’t enrolled at Stephen’s College, DeLaria somehow lived like she was, and the law still found her.

Want more family drama, read about the sibling who refused to split expenses after using their savings for a secret vacation.