Two face charges for allegedly desecrating U.S. flag during hockey prank
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Riverside County prosecutors announced Friday they would charge two men of Canadian descent with misdemeanor charges for allegedly desecrating the U.S. flag.
The men were booked earlier this week on suspicion of desecrating a U.S. flag that had flown on a La Quinta mountaintop to honor victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. They allegedly replaced the flag with a Canadian flag following Canada’s victory over the United States in hockey during the Winter Olympics.
The U.S. flag had been displayed for several years near Highway 111 and Washington Street after it was put there by a local resident, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said.
The men facing charges, Ryan Smith, 25, of Bermuda Dunes and Matt Siefert, 26, of Palm Desert could not immediately be reached for comment.
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