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Illinois man sues police over flag burning arrest
Source: Reuters
U.S. | Thu Jan 12, 2017 | 1:09pm EST
Illinois man sues police over flag burning arrest
By Timothy Mclaughlin | CHICAGO
An Illinois man is suing members of a local police department alleging his rights were violated when he was arrested last year after he posted photos of himself burning an American flag on social media and they were shared widely, according to court documents.
Bryton Mellott, 22, of Urbana, Illinois, a city around 140 miles (225 km) south of Chicago, set an American flag on fire on July 3 in a friend's backyard to protest the conditions of many Americans' lives. He then posted photos to Facebook along with an explanation of his actions, according to court documents filed on Wednesday.
Many states, including Illinois, continue to have flag desecration laws on the books, though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that burning of the flag is protected as an expression of free speech.
The Urbana Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
Mellott's lawsuit alleges that four Urbana police officers violated his right to free speech and detained him without reason. The American Civil Liberties Union is representing Mellott. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois.
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Illinois man sues police over flag burning arrest
By Timothy Mclaughlin | CHICAGO
An Illinois man is suing members of a local police department alleging his rights were violated when he was arrested last year after he posted photos of himself burning an American flag on social media and they were shared widely, according to court documents.
Bryton Mellott, 22, of Urbana, Illinois, a city around 140 miles (225 km) south of Chicago, set an American flag on fire on July 3 in a friend's backyard to protest the conditions of many Americans' lives. He then posted photos to Facebook along with an explanation of his actions, according to court documents filed on Wednesday.
Many states, including Illinois, continue to have flag desecration laws on the books, though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that burning of the flag is protected as an expression of free speech.
The Urbana Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
Mellott's lawsuit alleges that four Urbana police officers violated his right to free speech and detained him without reason. The American Civil Liberties Union is representing Mellott. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-illinois-flagburning-idUSKBN14W2M6
4 replies
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as he said he would, i think a lot of us will be burning flags. Totally a symbol of FREE SPEECH, and against government wrongdoing, and for me it will NEVER be a protest of veterans (as the Repubs try to contort the message).
Peaceful symbolic protest. 
