Flag Burner at Center of Landmark Supreme Court Case Won't Face New Charges in DC
That landmark case 30 years ago was a victory for Gregory "Joey" Johnson, the same person involved in the case that was dismissed Monday.
September 10, 2019 at 03:30 PM
2 minute read
The original version of this story was published on National Law Journal
The Washington attorney general this week dropped all charges against Gregory Johnson, the activist who burned an American flag in front of the White House during Fourth of July celebrations.
The American Civil Liberties Union and Johnson's lawyer Mark Goldstone on Sept. 5 urged the city to dismiss the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges, invoking the 1989 U.S. Supreme Court decision Texas v. Johnson, which ruled that flag burning was a form of symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment.
That landmark case 30 years ago was a victory for Gregory "Joey" Johnson, the same person involved in the case that was dismissed Monday. Johnson is a member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, and he has burned flags in public several times since the Supreme Court issued its decision.
"Mr. Johnson's expressive conduct … was entirely peaceful and non-threatening [and] was therefore protected by the First Amendment," the letter to D.C. attorney general Karl Racine stated. "There is no justifiable basis for this prosecution."
Johnson announced his intentions before July Fourth, telling USA Today "I am going to D.C. on the Fourth of July and I'm going to burn the flag in protest (of his) whole fascist agenda," Johnson said, referring to President Donald Trump, who presided over the celebration.
Without stating any reason, the city on Monday filed a notice of dismissal with the D.C. Superior Court. Federal charges against Johnson were dropped July 5.
A spokesperson for the D.C. attorney general's office was not immediately reached for comment.
At an earlier D.C. court proceeding, Goldstone said, "Everyone was aware that this was the same Joey Johnson as the one involved in the Supreme Court case."
The Supreme Court in 1989 ruled in favor of Johnson by a 5-4 vote, with Justice Antonin Scalia casting the fifth vote.
Scalia often mentioned his vote in public appearances, stating that the First Amendment required the result, but adding that if he were king, he would jail anyone who burned the flag. Scalia called Johnson "a bearded weirdo."
When arrested in July, the 62-year-old Johnson was clean-shaven.
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