{"id":2483854,"date":"2025-09-08T19:39:02","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T23:39:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ny-village-leaves-disabled-vet-at-mercy-of-thieves-then-persecutes-him-for-trying-to-exercise-free-speech\/"},"modified":"2025-09-08T19:40:59","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T23:40:59","slug":"ny-village-leaves-disabled-vet-at-mercy-of-thieves-then-persecutes-him-for-trying-to-exercise-free-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ny-village-leaves-disabled-vet-at-mercy-of-thieves-then-persecutes-him-for-trying-to-exercise-free-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"NY Village Leaves Disabled Vet at Mercy of Thieves, Then Persecutes Him for Trying to Exercise Free Speech"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fny-village-leaves-disabled-vet-at-mercy-of-thieves-then-persecutes-him-for-trying-to-exercise-free-speech%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2483854&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses a case in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, where disabled Vietnam veteran Leonard Amicola has been sued by local officials after refusing to remove a &#8220;Trump is my President&#8221; flag from his property. Amicola has displayed various Trump flags for four years despite experiencing vandalism and threats. After one flagpole was stolen, he hung the flag between two trees, which village officials claim violates a &#8220;content-neutral&#8221; code banning banners. The mayor insists the issue is a matter of code enforcement, not free speech, noting that flags on flagpoles are allowed. The case has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-descend-into-twitter-war-with-amazon\/\" title=\"Democrats Descend into Twitter War With Amazon\">drawn national attention<\/a> on social media, with critics condemning it as government overreach and an attack on First Amendment rights. Amicola&#8217;s lawyer may take the case to federal court, raising the broader question of whether municipalities can use code enforcement to restrict political expression, especially after failing to protect property rights.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Governments at every level have many subtle ways to encroach on freedom, not to mention many euphemisms for the encroachment.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, at the local level, officials might refuse to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >punish property-related crimes<\/a>. Or, they might describe their own rank censorship as &ldquo;code enforcement.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/westchester.news12.com\/man-told-to-take-down-trump-flag-says-its-a-first-amendment-issue-mayor-says-it-has-to-be-on-a-flag-pole\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News 12<\/a> in Westchester, New York, disabled Vietnam veteran Leonard Amicola, a resident of the village of Croton-on-Hudson for 67 years, faces legal action from local officials after refusing to take down his &ldquo;Trump is my President&rdquo; flag.<\/p>\n<p>Amicola explained that he has kept a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-darling-quiet-trump-crushes-second-rate-reporter-suggested-going-war-chicago\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trump<\/a> flag of some kind on his property for the last four years.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, he has also had &ldquo;a few circumstances&rdquo; of vandalism, as well as threats both to himself and to the flags.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/usmc-harrier-pilot-might-first-ace-since-vietnam-houthi-air-assets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Vietnam<\/a> vet moved the current flag to a higher location after he had it stolen off his property. Hence, the flag now hangs between two trees.<\/p>\n<p>Village officials, however &mdash; busybodies by nature &mdash; have insisted that the flag violates its &ldquo;content-neutral code.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Croton-on-Hudson Mayor Brian Pugh, in fact, cited a &ldquo;longstanding prohibition on banners&rdquo; and described Amicola&rsquo;s case as a &ldquo;straight forward code enforcement matter, not a free speech issue.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Flying the flag on a flagpole, for instance, would not violate code. But Amicola said that he had the flag on a flagpole when it was stolen.<\/p>\n<p>Former Vice President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/dnc-continues-bail-kamala-election-loss-fork-millions-pay-off-campaign-debt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kamala Harris<\/a> won Westchester County by 26 points in the 2024 election, per the <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/election-results-2024\/new-york\/?r=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Associated Press<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Fortunately, Amicola&rsquo;s case has garnered national attention thanks to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-new-acting-attorney-general-jeff-rosen-recently-wrote-an-essay-on-foreign-influence-in-us-elections-this-tells-us-a-little-about-his-knowledge-of-whats-going-on-today\/\" title=\"The New Acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen Recently Wrote an Essay on Foreign Influence in US Elections \u2013 This Tells Us A Little About His Knowledge of What\u2019s Going On Today\">social media platform<\/a> X.<\/p>\n<p>Libs of TikTok, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/twitter-files-part-two-confirms-the-tech-giant-has-been-shadowbanning-conservatives-for-years\/\" title=\"\u2018Twitter Files: Part Two\u2019 Confirms The Tech Giant Has Been Shadowbanning Conservatives For Years\">prominent conservative account<\/a> with more than&nbsp; 4.3 million followers, blasted village officials for their &ldquo;blatant attack on Free Speech.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">UNREAL. Croton-on-Hudson, NY, is SUING long-time resident Leonard Amicola for displaying a Trump flag on his own property, citing &ldquo;Village Code violations.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>This is a blatant attack on Free Speech. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/PHIh5SV0eq\">pic.twitter.com\/PHIh5SV0eq<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/libsoftiktok\/status\/1963667768944759118?\">September 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Another X user called it &ldquo;textbook government overreach.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Croton-on-Hudson&rsquo;s lawsuit against Leonard Amicola for flying a Trump flag is textbook government overreach. The First Amendment exists precisely to protect political expression&mdash;even when bureaucrats find it inconvenient. Public schools already tried silencing conservative views&hellip;<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; DOGEai (@dogeai_gov) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/dogeai_gov\/status\/1963668797476249748?\">September 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Interestingly, Amicola&rsquo;s lawyer hinted at the possibility of taking his case to federal court.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, one would love to see the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/deep-dive-4-precedents-scotus-strike-next-term-seismic-shift-bring-gay-marriage-prayer-school-others\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Supreme Court<\/a> take up the key question involved here. Namely, can a municipality (or any government), under the guise of &ldquo;code enforcement,&rdquo; deprive a citizen of free speech, particularly after failing to protect his or her property rights?<\/p>\n<p>Officials in liberal Westchester County might not like the answer.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Governments at all levels often find subtle methods to infringe on freedoms, frequently using euphemisms to mask these actions. For example, local authorities might neglect to address property crimes or label outright censorship as &#8220;code enforcement.&#8221; In Westchester, New York, disabled Vietnam veteran Leonard Amicola, who has lived in Croton-on-Hudson for 67 years, is facing legal action after refusing to remove his &#8220;Trump is my President&#8221; flag. Amicola has displayed some form of a Trump flag on his property for the past four years but has experienced vandalism and threats related to it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2483855,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-65.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[33274,62885,39460,32311,62884],"class_list":["post-2483854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-civil-rights","tag-community-injustice","tag-disabled-vet","tag-free-speech","tag-village-persecution"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-65.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2483854"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483854\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2483858,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2483854\/revisions\/2483858"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2483855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2483854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2483854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2483854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}