NEWS ARTICLE
"Flag-defiling charge ends in fight, arrests" by Mike McWilliams, Asheville Citizen-Times, July 26, 2007
A couple who said they were protesting the state of the country by flying the U.S. flag upside down with signs pinned to it found themselves in jail following a scuffle with a deputy Wednesday morning.
RESPONSE
If a member of law enforcement is alerted to an American flag flying upside down at a residence, I think it would be perfectly reasonable for them to pay a courtesy visit to see if the residents are truly in distress rather than violently barge in to someone’s private home and manhandle them into submission and captivity. That would be the American thing to do.The arrogance of government and police power is staggering.
It saddens me to hear responses on the AC-T bulletin board calling for greater uses of force and violence against peaceful protests, greater restrictions on the speech of authentic patriots, greater losses of individual liberties to the reach and powers of an authoritarian state, and a greater inversion of the sovereignty of the individual in favor of the brute force of government control.
Pinto Kroger smirkingly wrote in the AC-T bulletin board:
"Get this, the Kuhns must be fun-loving REPUBLICANS. The picture of them shows a Ron Paul for President sign!"
It is more likely that they are libertarians, like me, who would like to see Ron Paul in the White House, regardless of his party affiliation.
I agree with them that this country is in distress; severe distress. I don’t believe that the Kuhn’s method of communicating that fact is particularly effective, but this incident graphically demonstrates their point quite well.
I was assaulted by a sheriff's deputy in Atlanta. He was off-duty, in uniform and commanded me to get on the ground with his ASP raised. I justifiably refused. This self-righteous monster put me in the hospital. I was treated at Grady Hospital (under arrest and in hand-cuffs for eight days without access to a phone), released in a wheelchair (in custody). I later recovered at home and removed my own stapled stitches from a split kneecap and fractured, exposed tibia.I sued and won two settlements. The officer was fired.
I know for a fact that a law enforcement officer will lie to their supervisors, their peers, the press, and a judge when they know they have broken the law by assaulting an innocent citizen under the color of authority.
I don't care if you have a uniform, a badge and George freaking Bush's signature on your rosy red ass, you cannot break the law and assault an innocent citizen engaged in a peaceful protest!
In this case, the deputy sheriff broke the law. He was there on a personal mission fueled by irrational, volcanic emotion. Buncombe County should be sued and the officer brought up on charges.
Here's my list so far, in order:
- Breaking and Entering (forcibly gaining entry)
- Damage to Property (broken window)
- Criminal Trespass (entrying another's property without right or permission)
- Assault with a Weapon (pepper spray, ASP baton, Taser)
- Abuse of Power (assault "under color of authority")
- Unlawful Detention (illegal arrest)
- Conspiracy (colluding on false account of incident)
- Filing a False Report (Sheriff's Office report)
- Obstruction of Justice (diverting investigation of facts)
- Theft (flag taken, later return not mitigating)
The Kuhn’s, in their peaceful protests, have a valid criticism and are defending not only the flag but what it supposedly stands for.The thug that forcibly entered their home “under color of authority” and out of personal vendetta and anger is the criminal and deserves a criminal’s reward.
FURTHER READING
"N.C. flag law rarely enforced" by Mike McWilliams, Asheville Citizen-Times, July 27, 2007.
"Charges dropped in flag desecration case" by Mike McWilliams, Asheville Citizen-Times, August 2, 2007.
"Charges dropped in flag-desecration case" by David Forbes, Mountain Xpress, 08/02/2007.
"Flag charges dropped" by By McWilliams, Behsudi, Asheville Citizen-Times, August 3, 2007.
VIDEO
News Report, WLOS News 13, July 25, 2007:
News Report, WLOS News 13, July 26, 2007:
