Overview
- Authorities say officers detained a 36-year-old man after he lowered an American flag outside the South Lake Tahoe police station and tried to set it on fire, and he was booked on felony attempted arson.
- The suspect, a South Lake Tahoe resident whose name was not released, was taken to the El Dorado County Jail in connection with the flag incident.
- Police say the man had been arrested the day before on suspicion of public intoxication and possession of drug paraphernalia after an allegation that he shot arrows at a nearby YMCA and was released before the flag incident.
- The South Lake Tahoe Police Department says the man has been arrested multiple times since April on suspected drug-related offenses, which officers say frames the incident as part of recurring contacts with law enforcement.
- The case remains under local investigation and the arrest may prompt review of how repeat arrests and short jail releases are handled in the community.