The Georgia State Representative who was arrested knocking on Governor Brian Kemp’s door last week is talking about the  “terrifying” experience. Rep. Park Cannon says her position as the House Democratic caucus secretary means she has always been “present to witness bill signings,” but on the day that Kemp was set to sign the controversial voting bill she was locked out of the process. The 29-year-old told CNN’s Don Lemon, “When we learned late in the hour, all of a sudden that this bill, SB 202, was being passed, it was important to be there to witness it and to get the information out, just like I always would.”  Cannon says she knew “the world was watching.” 

During a news conference (watch above), Cannon’s attorney Gerald Griggs said: “She wasn’t belligerent. She was merely asking to witness the attempt to take away voting rights for a large majority of Georgia citizens — particularly Black and brown Georgia citizens. She would have just witnessed the signing, she wouldn’t have been disruptive.”

According to an incident report obtained by NBC News, arresting officer Lt. G.D. Langford wrote that the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol was “in the back of my mind” during the incident. He said he “noticed the other protestors began to get louder as she was refusing to follow commands… I believed Cannon’s actions of obstructing law enforcement in front of agitated protestors to constitute a breach of the peace.”

But Griggs says: “The facts, videos and witnesses are inconsistent with the allegations made in the police report.”

Cannon says all this made her “afraid” in the moment:

“It makes me wonder, why? Why were they arresting me? Why they were doing this? Why did the world have to experience another traumatizing arrest?”

Cannon says her arm was hurt during the arrest but didn’t give specifics. She appeared on Lemon’s program with her arm in a sling.

Cannon was charged with felony obstruction and preventing or disrupting general assembly session. The felony charges carry up to eight years in jail. Cannon’s attorney says he is hoping to get the charges dismissed, “Then there’s the possibility of legal action after that. That could look like anything from violation of civil rights to violation of her duties as an elected official.”