A 22-year-old Illinois man named Bryton Mellott decided to celebrate July Fourth by burning the US flag and posting pictures of his actions on Facebook. The actions led to his arrest by local police, national press attention, and threats against his life.

“I am not proud to be an American," wrote Mellott, in a Facebook post that he later deleted. "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."

The photo remains up, with the accompanying hashtag "#betterburnthatflag."

Some readers of Mellott's page were so offended they called the police, presumably asking for his arrest. Others reportedly called in concerned about Mellott's safety. In any case, the Urbana Police Department came by Mellott's residence and arrested him. At about 9:47am on Independence Day, Mellott was booked into jail and charged with "flag desecration" and disorderly conduct.

"Free speech is free speech," Urbana Police Sgt. Andrew Charles told a Forbes writer who asked about the arrest. "It’s when you say things that are inciteful and make it clear that you are associated with someone that doesn’t share your ideas; it got raised to a level where a reasonable person there would fear for their safety. It’s similar to yelling fire in a movie theater."

Legally, however, Mellott's actions aren't at all similar. Flag-burning has been, for more than 20 years, an example of much-disliked but clearly protected speech. The US Supreme Court ruled that flag-burning is protected by the First Amendment.

Rather than be arraigned the next day, Mellott was released. Local prosecutors quickly made clear they would not charge him. Illinois State's Attorney Julia Rietz said that "the act of burning a flag is protected free speech according to the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Texas v. Johnson, 491 US 397 (1989)."

The State's Attorney also said that while the Illinois statute against "flag desecration" remains in effect, it contradicts the Supreme Court. "We will be discussing this issue with our local legislators and asking that they consider reviewing this statute given the constitutional issues it presents."

Whose "Disorderly Conduct?"

Mellott's arrest, and the revelation that Illinois even has an anti-flag-burning statute, garnered widespread press coverage.

The Urbana cops' theory was that they had a right to arrest Mellott because his actions presented a danger to himself and others. The fact that he mentioned his place of employment (Wal-Mart) was part of their rationalization.

"Given the volume of responses and specificity of threat against his place of employment (a location where an act of violence would likely cause harm to others) prompted police involvement in this case," the police department wrote in a press release describing the situation.

But speech that might cause other people to become violent isn't an excuse for legal action against the speaker.

"[T]he [Supreme] court has made clear since 1949 that the government can’t punish someone for 'disorderly conduct' simply because his speech offends people and leads some of them to threaten violent retaliation," wrote UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh in his blog post about the incident.

In fact, the police must protect—not arrest—the speaker, even though it can be costly.

And that appears to be the direction in which the department is now moving. Today, Urbana Police Chief Patrick Connolly told the local Fox affiliate his department is sifting through hundreds of death threats directed at Mellott, looking at ones that "may be credible."

Mellott himself has been fairly quiet and hasn't responded to numerous press inquiries since his arrest made his story go viral.

"So it'd be super duper if the death threats could stop," he wrote in a July 4 Facebook post.

"I want to thank each and every one of you for stopping by the page to show support or to voice your opinion," he wrote on July 5. "I understand why some of you disagree, but why fight for rights that we never put to use?"