You're under arrest for extreme tackiness: Police engineer ridiculous "Frozen"-inspired stunt

Local law enforcement can't resist a good viral-content opportunity when they see one.

Published February 25, 2015 3:15PM (EST)

Once upon a time, a local Kentucky police department posted a warrant for an arrest on its official Facebook page in jest. It was issued to "Frozen's" fictional princess Elsa.

As it turns out, it was cold that day. Brutally cold. So, the Harlan City Police Department, knowing what they know about viral content ("The Internet loves 'Frozen'!") and knowing what they know about "Frozen" ("There's a princess who controls weather stuff!") decided to jump on this opportunity to do some personal rebranding and tell the Internet that they're relevant and just like us.

That original post went viral, of course, with over 17,000 shares and 10,000 "likes." Other police departments took note as the goofy viral stunt weasled its way into the Internet's collective heart.

Enter: Glass Slipper Productions, an events company in Hanahan, South Carolina that arranges for princesses to visit children's parties. That company, with the help of Tammy Sakalas of Sakalas Photography, staged a full-blown "fake" arrest of the Snow Queen for "attempting to freeze over a fountain." The owner of Glass Slipper Productions told The Huffington Post Tuesday that she was inspired by the viral arrest warrant.

Sakalas took pictures of the staged arrest which involved, first, getting the approval of the police department (They were very gracious, it turns out! So that wasn't difficult.) Then, Hanahan Police would run after the princess role-played by actress Courtney Fazel with a pair of bright pink handcuffs, seating her in their car, taking her back to the station and then standing by as Elsa posed for a series of wacky princess-inspired pictures. Rest assured, these officers were only off-guard for 10 minutes?

The Hanahan Police Department later posted on their Facebook page: "We hope that the arrest of Elsa will encourage good weather for our area."

What can we learn from all of this madness, other than that "Frozen" viral content will follow us to our graves? Well, for one: Police Departments are just as desperate to spruce up their online vibe and appear as relatable as possible as us. It's yet to be seen whether the Hanahan's complicit behavior in the Elsa stunt has altered the public's perception in any capacity -- but it certainly hasn't hurt the Harlan City Police Department, which now has a booming Facebook presence. The Department regularly updates their page with media coverage.

 


By Colin Gorenstein

Colin Gorenstein is Salon's assistant editor of internet and viral content. Follow @colingorenstein or email cgorenstein@salon.com.

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Entertainment Frozen Viral Content