Man who swiped U.S. flag from Portland courthouse, set it on fire, gets probation

PORTLAND — A man who took the American flag from outside Gus J. Solomon U.S. Courthouse in Portland and then set it on fire in front of the police bureau’s Central Precinct was sentenced Monday to a year of probation.

Jeffrey Richard Singer, 33, had pleaded guilty to theft of government property. The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.

The theft happened Sept. 19, when Singer stole the flag and marched with it in a crowd to the Central Precinct during a nightly protest after the May 25 killing of George Floyd, a Black man who died when a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, according to prosecutors.

U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown additionally ordered Singer to repay the government $218.50 in restitution for the destroyed flag.

Singer was indicted in October and charged with theft of government property and civil disorder.

Singer is the third defendant sentenced and one of four who have pleaded guilty in federal court in a protest-related prosecution.

Of 99 federal protest-related prosecutions in the past year, 50 have been dismissed. Thirty-two cases are pending with trial dates scheduled. Fourteen others are nearing resolution, according to Kevin Sonoff, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The pending prosecutions include defendants charged with civil disorder, destruction of government property, arson and assault on a federal officer.