Bryton Mellott: Chicago Flag Burner Files Lawsuits Over Arrest

A Chicago man who was arrested for burning the American flag has filed a lawsuit over the incident. Bryton Mellot, 22, was arrested on the 4th of July last year on flag burning charges after posting images of his act and a long rant on his Facebook page. Threats of violence against Mellot quickly appeared under his post, which also noted his place of employment.

Bryton Mellot said he planned out his flag burning free speech protest carefully. He also maintains the Illinois flag desecration law banning him from lighting the American Flag on fire is unconstitutional.

Here’s an excerpt from Mellot’s flag burning Facebook post:

“I am not proud to be an American. In this moment, being proud of my country is to ignore the atrocities committed against people of color, people living in poverty, people who identify as women, and against my own queer community on a daily basis.”

Police in Urbana, a Chicago suburb, arrested Mellot while he was working at Walmart at least, in part, for his own protection, they maintain. Law enforcement officers were concerned about the threats of violence which had been levied on social media being carried out, and Bryton Mellot or Walmart shoppers and employees getting hurt, Fox News notes.

@Walmart if you love your country and troops fire him ASAP!! #brytonmellot pic.twitter.com/xl8uHhAPK0

— mrclutch212 (@gritzangravy212) July 4, 2016

“Open dissent is the highest form of American patriotism,” Bryton Mellot said in a prepared statement after filing the lawsuit. “And it was a frightening display of irony that on the Fourth of July, I should be taken from my workplace to sit in a county jail for exercising this liberty.”

Hundreds of negative comments were posted to Mellot’s Facebook page after he shared the photos of him lighting the flag on fire. After Urbana police officers arrested the Chicago area man, he was detained for several hours and ultimately released without being charged with flag burning or any other crime, the News-Gazette reports.

“I would like to one day feel a sense of pride toward my nationality again. But too little progress has been made. Too many people still suffer at the hands of politicians influenced by special interests,” Mellot also posted to Facebook, according to BizPacReview. “I do not have pride in my country. I am overwhelmingly ashamed, and I will demonstrate my feelings accordingly. #ArrestMe.”

Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz told the press laws dealing with flag burning and constitutional rights are “extremely complex.” Rietz also states the Urbana Police Department recognizes the Bryton Mellot flag burning incident is a case where free speech rights might have “been in conflict” with the safety of innocent bystanders.

“In this circumstance, our officers acted in good faith and in reliance on a state law that was passed by our legislature in an attempt to do just that. We respect the analysis of the State’s Attorney’s Office and their determination not to proceed with the prosecution in this matter,” the Champaign County State’s Attorney continued.

The Bryont Mellot flag burning lawsuit names multiple Urbana police officers. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Illinois is representing Mellot in the lawsuit, which was filed on Wednesday.

“It’s very clear that this law is unconstitutional and we want to make sure that in the future, Illinois law enforcement officers know that they cannot arrest people under this statute,” ACLU attorney Rebecca Glenberg said.

#FreedomOfSpeech #BrytonMellot pic.twitter.com/nmg8aNzYYJ

— Juxhin Çela???????? (@JuxhinCelaEU) July 6, 2016

The United States Supreme Court struck down flag burning laws in some states in separate rulings in both 1989 and 1990. The court ruled flag desecration is a constitutionally protected form of free speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment. Arrest for desecration of the flag is rare.

The Supreme Court ruling struck down a flag burning law in Wisconsin in the 1990s. A Missouri flag desecration law was ultimately repealed after an extensive court battle and will no longer be effective after the end of this month. Despite the United States Supreme Court ruling, approximately 40 states still have flag burning laws on the books.

[Featured Image by DFLC Prints/Shutterstock]