Virginia: It is a crime for anyone to "publicly burn with contempt, mutilate, deface, defile, trample upon, or wear with intent to defile" the American or state flags. A "flag" here is defined as "any flag, standard, color, ensign or shield, or copy, picture or representation thereof, made of any substance or represented or produced thereon, and of any size, evidently purporting to be such flag, standard, color, ensign or shield of the United States, or of this Commonwealth, or a copy, picture or representation thereof."
Penalty: none specified.
Source: 18.2-488
Analysis:
In Virginia it's quite legal to burn, deface, defile, or trample upon an American flag as long as you are not communicating contempt for the flag when you do it. If, however, you communicate contempt, then your actions suddenly become a crime. So why not be honest and just say that it's a crime to express contempt for the American flag?
More:
- Overview of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
- Index of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
