Boston man threw burning flag onto police van, spat on officer: cops
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A flag at half-staff outside the Boston Police Department headquarters in 2016	Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
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A Boston man was arrested for allegedly throwing a burning American flag onto the roof of a police vehicle and spitting on an officer's shoe, police said.
Daniel Lucey, 40, admitted to cops that he torched the flag and tossed it onto the unoccupied van parked in Boston Common as a form of protest, police said Monday.
It's unclear exactly what Lucey was protesting, but officers found him in possession of several other US flags that looked similar to ones placed in front of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument inside Boston Common over Memorial Day weekend, department officials said.
"While speaking to the officers, the suspect then proceeded to spit at one of them, with saliva striking the officer's shoe," police said in a statement. "The suspect was then placed in custody on scene."
Lucey was taken into custody Sunday on charges of disorderly conduct, assault and battery on a police officer, malicious destruction of property and malicious destruction of historical monuments. He's expected to be appear in Boston Municipal Court, police said.
Volunteers over the weekend placed 1,000 flags in Boston Common to honor fallen Massachusetts members of the military, WCVB reported.
"I hope this iconic memorial, which is so important to so many and so popular to the people of Boston and the people of the commonwealth, provides you with a little bit of comfort, that those losses will never be forgotten," Gov. Charlie Baker said.
The flags were planted six feet apart in a nod to ongoing social-distancing guidelines, the station reported.
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