Jail

The subject of this article: exists in the Forrest Gump novel canon (including Gump & Co.) is not mentioned in the Forrest Gump film canon

Forrest Gump is sent to jail repeatedly in the Forrest Gump novel as well as in its sequel. He is not sent to jail in the film. All lists may be incomplete.

In Forrest Gump

In the first novel, Forrest is jailed several times.

1. Forrest is first jailed in Mobile, Alabama after accidentally ripping Jenny Curran's dress open at the movie theater. A judge releases him so that he can go play football for the University of Alabama, as long as "[he gets his] big ass out of town".
2. Forrest is jailed in China during his visit for ping-pong diplomacy, after wandering for hours in Peking, under suspicion of being a spy.
3. Forrest is jailed in Washington, D.C. for "assault with a dangerous weapon—a medal—an resistin arrest" when he is compelled to throw his Medal of Honor at an anti-war rally. He accidentally throws too hard, and hits the Clerk of the U.S. Senate, starting a small riot. A judge commits him for psychiatric observation for thirty days, during which his mathematical abilities are noted, and he is compelled to participate in a NASA flight into space on the Multi-Orbital Pre-Planetary Sub-Gravitational Inter-Spheroid Spaceflight Training Mission.
4. Forrest is jailed in Nashville, Tennessee for loitering when he is unable to find anything to do after missing his bus to Birmingham. Mister Tribble, a former chess grandmaster who was impressed by Forrest's abilities in the game, bails him out of jail.
5. Forrest is jailed in Los Angeles, California after filming a scene from a remake of The Creature from the Black Lagoon. His co-star, Raquel Welch, accidentally rips her dress off. Raquel and Forrest (as well as Sue, the orangutan) flee down the Santa Monica Freeway and Sunset Boulevard in search of a clothing store. When Welch is unable to produce payment, or proof of her actual celebrity identity (revealing her massive breasts did not suffice), the three are arrested. Mister Felder, the director of the movie, arrives with lawyers for Welch; Mister Tribble again bails out Forrest (and presumably Sue).
6. In Gump & Co., Forrest Gump is compelled by Colonel Oliver North and President Reagan to aid US diplomatic efforts in going through with the plan. When the illegal plan is revealed, Colonel North testifies that Forrest Gump masterminded the plan, and Forrest is jailed.

In Gump & Co.

In the sequel Gump & Co., Forrest is jailed several times.

1. Forrest is first jailed in New Orleans, Louisiana when he finds an old friend, Snake, while working for a strip joint called Wanda's. He makes the mistake of grabbing Snake's beer, and starts a small fight. A friend of Snake's bails him out, as well as his other friends (and Forrest).
2. Forrest is jailed in Washington, D.C. for contempt of Congress after Colonel North falsely identifies him as the mastermind of the Iran–Contra affair. Forrest is let go on a work release program for the Reverend Jim Bakker, to work at his Holy Land theme park.
3. Forrest is jailed in New York City for insider trading in Ivan Bozosky's firm. His prosecutor is Mister Guguglianti. Bozosky intends to blame Forrest for all offenses, but Forrest identifies himself as innocent of any criminal intent, and Bozosky and his cohorts as mastermind of the plot.
4. Forrest is jailed in New York City once more for being AWOL from the military, after his release from jail for the previous offense. He is put in a stockade, and transferred to Alaska.

Close calls

Forrest also avoids jail a few times.

1. Forrest is almost jailed when he attempts to feed Wanda the hog at the National Zoo. A zoo guard confronts him and, despite Forrest's claims that the pig is his, threatens to arrest him. Forrest is tired of being abused, and grabs the guard, spins him (reminiscent of his professional wrestling days) and throws him into the seal pool.
   The same guard or policeman also encounters Little Forrest giving his jacket to the hog. Little Forrest explains that it is his pig, and the guard responds "Yeah, that's what some other crackpot tole me, too," and walks away.