Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan was supposed to watch President Bush's state of the union address from inside the Capitol. Instead, she was arrested just moments before the President arrived.

Her offense: her shirt, bearing an anti-war message and other "unlawful conduct," police said. Capitol Police Sgt. Kimberly Schneider said Sheehan had worn a T-shirt with an anti-war slogan to Tuesday night's speech and covered it up until she took her seat. Police warned her that such displays were not allowed in the House chamber, but she did not respond, the spokeswoman said.

Sheehan, the mother of a fallen soldier in Iraq who reinvigorated the anti-war movement, was handcuffed and charged with unlawful conduct, according to Schneider. Sheehan did not resist and left with a smile. The charge was a misdemeanor and Sheehan was being released on her own recognizance, Schneider said. She said the unlawful conduct charge carries a maximum sentence of one year in jail.