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Faleena Hopkins, an American romance novelist, has been missing for over a week after she was released from a Wyoming jail on January 30. Police arrested the 52-year-old author on January 27 after a 24-mile chase across Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. During the chase, spike strips were deployed to stop Faleena's car.
Subsequently, she was arrested and taken to Teton County jail. She was released from custody three days later on January 30 by US Magistrate Judge Kelly Rankin and was scheduled for a court appearance later in February for an arraignment hearing.
As per federal court records, the charges based on which the author was arrested included speeding, obstructing traffic, ignoring stop signs, driving without due care and attention, and attempting to flee and elude the police. Faleena was also cited for parking her car on a snowy route that was only fit for particular vehicles.
These records also suggest that the novelist was released on bond and did not require any payment.
Faleena Hopkins was last seen in Jackson on the same day of her release from jail, as stated by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation. On February 10, a friend of the author informed a local media outlet that Faleena had been missing for 10 days.
Faleena Hopkins claimed trademark of the term 'cocky'
Faleena Hopkins, a self-published author, is known for her fairly successful romance novel series called The Cocker Brothers. In 2018, she made national headlines after trying to trademark the term 'cocky'.
Each book in this series contains the word 'cocky' in its title. The trilogy series entails the story of six brothers who are apparently womanizers.
The author claims that she has published more than forty novels. She also said that over a million copies of The Cocker Brothers series were sold.
According to US Patents and Trademarks Office records, in September 2017, Faleena Hopkins trademarked the term 'cocky' in the name of Hop Hop Productions Inc, her company.
She was trying to obtain control of the right to use 'cocky' in the context of romance novels. Faleena even went to the extent of seeking injunctions against several authors who had used the term in their book titles.
One such author, Jamila Jasper, made a tweet in 2018 where she uploaded an image of the email she received from Faleena. The Cocker Brothers author revealed that she was granted the official registered trademark of the term 'cocky' by the Federal Trademark Commission.
Faleena Hopkins allegedly wrote in that email:
"My attorney at Morris Yorn Entertainment Law has advised me that if I sue you I will win all the monies you have earned on this title. I will do that - but I'd rather give you the option."
After this instance, the Authors Guild Foundation and Romance Writers of America, a non-profit trade association, joined forces to provide legal counsel to the authors whom Faleena targeted.
They claimed that countless romance novels had used the word 'cocky' in their titles even before Faleena published her works. The assembled associations suggested that no author should hold a monopoly on the word.
As per the website of the patent office, Faleena surrendered her trademark in 2018.
Police have asked anyone with information regarding the missing author's whereabouts to contact either the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation or the Jackson Police Department.
Officials wrote in the missing persons listing:
"She is a white female, approximately 5'7', 135 pounds, with green eyes and blond hair.'Faleena has an infinity symbol on her left wrist, 'Follow All Instincts' on her right wrist, a lion face on her left shoulder and a hummingbird on her right ankle."
Court documents showed that Faleena Hopkins claimed to be a resident of Wyoming's Jackson. However, it was indicated by the jail roster that the missing author lived in Seattle, Washington.
