Updated Tuesday, 1 p.m.



URBANA, IL — Champaign County State's Attorney Julia Rietz won't file charges against a 22-year-old Urbana man whose social media post of him burning a flag incited the wrath of the internet, prompting death threats against him and demands that his employer fire him. Urbana police arrested Bryton Mellott on the Fourth of July, saying his actions constituted disorderly conduct and became a threat to others, including his employer.

On Tuesday, prosecutors decided there was no case. "The State's Attorney's Office is declining to file charges against (Bryton) Mellott as the act of burning a flag is protected free speech according to the US Supreme Court decision, Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)," Rietz said in a statement.

"We have considered 720 ILCS 5/49-1, Flag Desecration, an Illinois statute currently in effect," the statement reads. "This statute was the basis for the decision by Urbana Police officers to arrest Mellott. While that statute remains in effect, it is contradictory to the US Supreme Court ruling in Texas v. Johnson. We will be discussing this issue with our local legislators and asking that they consider reviewing this statute given the constitutional issues it presents." Now Mellott just wants calls for his death to stop.



On Monday, the young man found himself in handcuffs and the target of public ire after posting the photos paired with statements about violence and race in the U.S., according to a Forbes report. "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," Mellott wrote on his Facebook page. Shortly after the pic went up, callers began flooding the Urbana police department around 7:30 a.m., urging police to investigate Mellott and his page. The calls ranged from concerns over his post to threats against both Mellott and his employer, Walmart. Police became worried he was jeopardizing the public's safety.