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DOJ Drops Case Against Veteran Who Burned Flag Near White House

Prosecutors moved to dismiss just before a deadline to disclose internal records after a judge allowed scrutiny of whether the case targeted protected speech.

Jay Carey, left, a North Carolina veteran who burned a flag near the White House last month, talks with his supporters following his arraignment at the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse, in Washington on Sept. 17, 2025.
FILE - Jan Carey, a North Carolina veteran who burned a flag near the White House last month, listens while his attorneys speak following his arraignment at the E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr., File)
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Overview

  • Federal prosecutors on Friday asked a D.C. court to dismiss two misdemeanor charges against Jan “Jay” Carey over a 2025 flag-burning protest outside the White House.
  • Carey, a 55-year-old Army veteran, was arrested by U.S. Park Police in Lafayette Square the day President Trump signed an executive order urging action on flag burning.
  • The counts—igniting a fire in an undesignated area and causing damage to park property—did not criminalize flag burning itself and carried a maximum of six months’ jail time.
  • In January, Chief Judge James Boasberg authorized further inquiry into whether the prosecution sought to punish Carey’s constitutionally protected speech in light of the executive order.
  • Carey’s lawyer called the move “long overdue” and noted it preceded a Monday deadline to turn over internal decision-making records; the filing offered no reason, and prosecutors did not immediately comment.