By Suzie Ziegler
PATASKALA, Ohio — On Monday, Thomas DiSario received a letter from his homeowner’s association asking him to remove the Thin Blue Flag in his front yard, NBC 4 reported. DiSario flies the flag to honor his son, Steven Eric DiSario, who was fatally shot in the line of duty in 2017. DiSario says he’s had the flag since his son’s death.
In a letter to DiSario, the HOA said the flag violates a rule against displaying political signage.
“The political sign in the form of a flag must be removed from your property,” reads the letter obtained by NBC 4. “The flag on your pole is not a United States Flag. It is a political statement.”
DiSario disagrees. The veteran also flies a larger American flag above the Thin Blue Line flag, and doesn’t see either as political, according to the report.
“It represents my son and nothing else. So I don’t know why everybody is now harassing me that I have to take it down,” he said.
DiSario has also had to contend with trespassers. On Saturday, a man walked onto DiSario’s property and tried to take down the Thin Blue Line flag and American flag, the report said. DiSario asked the man to leave and later called the sheriff’s department to report the incident. Deputies were unable to find the alleged trespasser, according to NBC 4.
https://twitter.com/NatPoliceAssoc/status/1527048701616824321
David Dye, the HOA’s president, tells NBC 4 that the man wasn’t affiliated with the association. However, Dye maintains that DiSario must take down his Thin Blue Line flag per community rules.
“[DiSario] agreed by buying in this community that he can’t display what he wants to display,” Dye told NBC 4. “It doesn’t matter whether we agree. If it’s a sign, you are not allowed to post it, according to the deed restrictions.”
DiSario’s son was killed while responding to a shooting inside a nursing home, according to the report. Steven DiSario had recently been named Chief of Police in Kirkersville, Ohio. Two employees and the gunman were also found dead.