JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A veteran simply wanted to display a small American flag in a flower pot on the porch of his Southside condominium, but the homeowners association sued him for not paying his dues and damaging its reputation, saying the attention he brought to the issue resulted in death threats and people the HOA un-American.
This years-long fight was finally heard in the courtroom Monday.
The disagreement began when Larry Murphree placed a small American flag inside a potted plant on the porch of his unit at the Tides Condominium at Sweetwater, off Baymeadows Road. The homeowners association told him it was against the rules to display a flag there and filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Murphree, demanding he pays $15,000 in fines and all legal fees. The lawsuit also asked the judge to impose a gag order on Murphree, preventing him from talking to the media.
Murphree, a former U.S. Air Force air traffic controller, told News4Jax he settled that original lawsuit and the flag remained in the flower pot.
“It’s a small flag but it stood for a big thank you,” Murphree said. “This is the least I can do.”
The HOA came to Murphree again in 2013, telling him the rules had changed and he needed to remove the flag or pay a $100 per day fine. The HOA then put a foreclosure lien on Murphree’s house, saying he wasn’t paying his dues, but Murphree said his automatic payments to the HOA were still being deducted. The HOA wouldn’t say where that money went.
The HOA rules said flags could be displayed, but not in flower pots. In response, Murphree filed a federal lawsuit, citing the Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005, which made it illegal for homeowners associations to ban the display of the Stars and Stripes.
A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in 2014, finding he did not have the standing to sue to enforce the law. That same year the HOA used Murphree for breach of contract and other charges, then Murphree countersued.
“I assumed state and federal law overruled everything," Murphree testified when the case finally went to trial Monday.
When Murphree’s story first made news, it spread across the country. A woman representing the HOA told the court there were death threats and employees wouldn’t come to work because of the outrage over the flag ban.
The HOA said they do honor the flag and veterans and showed examples to people who questioned them.
“When you go down the Tides there’s massive 4-by-6 flags all down the road. It takes your breath away. It’s beautiful,” former property manager Katie Hollis testified. “But here we are on the news, ‘Oh, I can’t fly an American flag.’ It was such a joke. It was bad to watch this sweet, amazing community that supports the flag be dumped on like that.”
They said Murphree made a dangerous situation for them and, as a veteran, he should protect people.
“Larry, Mr. Murphree had already been on the TV. The death threats were coming in. We had gotten a lot of negative publicity that definitely wasn’t our community,” Hollis said.
Multiple people showed up to court, many dressed in the American flag to support Murphree.
After testimony was complete and the court adjourned for the day -- Judge Robert Dees gave both sides 30 days to prepare written closing arguments -- Murphree told News4Jax the fight has been worth it.
“It’s been right at 8 years I’ve been fighting for the flag. I was not going to give up. They thought eventually I would. My attorneys told me it’s like David versus Goliath -- you’re going to go in for the long run. And I said, ‘Yes sir,’ and I meant it,” Murphree said.
Flower will rule on the lawsuit after he reviews closing arguments, which are due March 27.
According to the Florida Times-Union, Murphree has sold the condo and moved, but he continued to pursue the issue.