CLEVELAND — All 18 people arrested during a controversial flag burning demonstration July 20 were released today on personal bail bonds.
An arraignment took place this afternoon for 17 protesters, including an Australian journalist who got caught in the midst of the chaos. According to defense lawyer Antonio Nicholson who is representing three of the defendants, everyone was released shortly after 5 p.m. All defendants pleaded not guilty.
Nicholson, an attorney of the Cuyahoga County Public Defenders Office, said the proceedings went smoothly once they began, despite initial delays.
“I’m happy to get all of them out,” he said after the arraignment ended.
Tensions sparked after several members of the Revolutionary Communist Party were arrested during a flag burning demonstration July 19 in Cleveland. The protest took place at the intersection of East Fourth Street and Prospect Avenue.
The demonstrator who burned the flag, Gregory Lee “Joey” Johnson, is the same revolutionary Communist activist who burned an American flag during the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, which led to the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Texas v. Johnson.
The Supreme Court determined flag burning constitutes as “symbolic speech,” and is therefore protected by the First Amendment.
During a press briefing this morning, Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams said Johnson lit an American flag on fire in the street, while also inadvertently lighting himself and those around him on fire.
The police and fire department officers on the scene engaged and firefighters immediately extinguished and then confiscated the flag, according to Williams and the CPD Twitter account.
When demonstrators did not comply with dispersal orders, arrests were made for charges including failure to disperse and resisting arrest.
Party members had a press conference in front of the Justice Center calling for immediate release of those who were arrested.
Sunsara Taylor, a supporter of the party, claimed police accounts of the incident were inaccurate, according to the party’s website.
According to the CPD Twitter account, “firefighters extinguished and took the flag that protesters attempted to destroy.”
However, Taylor claimed Johnson successfully burned the flag.
“We have proof, we have images,” she said. “That imperialist rag was in flames.”
During her speech, Taylor said the flag burning was a “beautiful thing and that there needs to be much more of it.”
Fellow protesters held signs as she spoke that read, “America was NEVER great” and “REVOLUTION — NOTHING LESS.”
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson told reporters during the Thursday morning news briefing there is a law against open burning in Cleveland, but flag burning is a First Amendment expression protected under the Constitution.
Williams also clarified to reporters the demonstrators were arrested not for burning an American flag, but for failure to comply with dispersal orders given from the police.
Hundreds of onlookers and members of the media swarmed the scene with cameras and video equipment, which made the situation more difficult for police, Williams said.
Charges have not been dropped for those who were arrested in the incident, Nicholson said.
Nicholson said the act of burning an American flag often sparks controversy in the courtroom.
“There were a lot of emotions firing up,” he said.
However, Nicholson also said the CPD did an excellent job in preparing for the convention and keeping people safe, while also protecting those who wish to exercise their constitutional right.
“If there’s anything that stood out to me, it’s how safe it was,” he said. “Chief Williams really stepped up.”
