A man was arrested on Monday evening for setting fire to an American flag in Lafayette Park, a federal park just outside the White House. The arrest came only hours after President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order targeting those who desecrate the national flag.
According to the US Secret Service, officers detained the man around 6.15 pm for “igniting an object” before handing him over to the US Park Police, which has jurisdiction in the area. The Park Police confirmed the arrest, citing a violation of federal regulations prohibiting fires in public parks outside designated areas.
Secret Service agents quickly doused the flames with a fire extinguisher before taking the man into custody.
While officials withheld the suspect’s identity, video footage published by CNN, showed the man claiming to be a veteran with more than 20 years of service in the US Army. He was heard saying that he burned the flag as a protest “to that illegal fascist president that sits in that house,” while pointing toward the White House.
"It's our First Amendment right to burn this flag regardless of what the president says," he added.
The arrest unfolded hours after the president had signed an executive order titled “Prosecuting Burning of the American Flag”, directing the Justice department to pursue criminal cases against those involved in flag burning.
The order instructs Attorney General Pam Bondi to identify state and local laws that can be applied to such cases, including violations related to disturbing the peace, property destruction, or incitement to violence. It also calls for revoking visas of foreign nationals caught burning the flag.
“All over the country they’re burning flags,” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office while signing the directive. “If you burn a flag, you get one year in jail, no early exits, no nothing.”
The new executive order however does not explicitly criminalize flag desecration, but emphasizes that the Justice Department must “vigorously prosecute” such cases and even consider litigation to “clarify the scope of First Amendment exceptions.”
Trump’s move is seen as an attempt to work around the US Supreme Court’s 1989 ruling in Texas v. Johnson. In a narrow 5–4 decision, the court struck down state laws banning flag burning, holding that the act constituted “symbolic speech” protected under the First Amendment.
According to the US Secret Service, officers detained the man around 6.15 pm for “igniting an object” before handing him over to the US Park Police, which has jurisdiction in the area. The Park Police confirmed the arrest, citing a violation of federal regulations prohibiting fires in public parks outside designated areas.
Secret Service agents quickly doused the flames with a fire extinguisher before taking the man into custody.
While officials withheld the suspect’s identity, video footage published by CNN, showed the man claiming to be a veteran with more than 20 years of service in the US Army. He was heard saying that he burned the flag as a protest “to that illegal fascist president that sits in that house,” while pointing toward the White House.
"It's our First Amendment right to burn this flag regardless of what the president says," he added.
The arrest unfolded hours after the president had signed an executive order titled “Prosecuting Burning of the American Flag”, directing the Justice department to pursue criminal cases against those involved in flag burning.
The order instructs Attorney General Pam Bondi to identify state and local laws that can be applied to such cases, including violations related to disturbing the peace, property destruction, or incitement to violence. It also calls for revoking visas of foreign nationals caught burning the flag.
“All over the country they’re burning flags,” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office while signing the directive. “If you burn a flag, you get one year in jail, no early exits, no nothing.”
The new executive order however does not explicitly criminalize flag desecration, but emphasizes that the Justice Department must “vigorously prosecute” such cases and even consider litigation to “clarify the scope of First Amendment exceptions.”
Trump’s move is seen as an attempt to work around the US Supreme Court’s 1989 ruling in Texas v. Johnson. In a narrow 5–4 decision, the court struck down state laws banning flag burning, holding that the act constituted “symbolic speech” protected under the First Amendment.
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