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Article
Courtesy of The First Coast News
By
Taylor Levesque
Published June 19, 2023
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JACKSONVILLE — In July, a new law will take effect expanding the right to
display flags regardless of rules created by homeowners associations.
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Governor DeSantis signed a bill that increases the number
of flags homeowners can display regardless of rules created
by the homeowners association. The flags allowed to be
displayed include the American flag, armed forces flags,
State of Florida flag, POW-MIA flag, and first responder
flags.
The law takes effect on July 1.
Before this, a Jacksonville man says he battled the
homeowner's association in his Jacksonville neighborhood for
more than a decade after he put an American flag in the yard
of his home. |
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"I had a small American flag 4x6, and I stuck it in
flowerpot on my front porch. It was a small flag, but it stood for a big
thank you for what, what they did and sacrifice. I was in the Air Force for
six years," Jacksonville resident Larry Murphree said.
Larry Murphree is a veteran.
He says he got a violation letter from the Sweetwater neighborhood
homeowner's association for having an 'unauthorized object'. They asked him
to take it down, but he refused and was fined.
"The flag stands for everything that's good about this country. And why
people want to tear it down or not respected or whatever... beyond my
comprehension," Murphree said.
Murphree says he doesn't regret defending his right to fly the flag. But, it
came with a financial burden. He spent more than $200,000 in legally fees
but only He eventually won a judgement of $1,223.
"It got so unbearable out their way they were picking on me that I had to
move," Murphree said.
In honor of Flag Day, Murphree says he now lives in a Jacksonville community
where he can peacefully display his American flag.
"If you believe in something, and you have the opportunity to stand up and
fight for it. If you don't, you will regret it the rest of your life. I gave
it my best shot. Like I said, the flag never loses," Murphree said.
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