North Carolina: Desecration of a flag is a misdemeanor that occurs when someone casts "contempt upon any flag of the United States or upon any flag of North Carolina by public acts of physical contact including, but not limited to, mutilation, defiling, defacing or trampling."
Penalty: none specified.
Source: 14.381
Analysis:
Once again, we have a "desecration" law in which all of the physical acts appear to be defined as examples of "casting contempt" upon the national or state flag. Since casting contempt is necessarily a communication of ideas and attitudes, North Carolina is necessarily criminalizing the dissemination of disfavored ideas rather than simply protecting flags.
More:
- Overview of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
- Index of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
