Mark Shane's burning of Patriots jerseys protest in Swansea simmers a year later

SWANSEA – On a Thursday night one year ago, at the corner of Main Street in the village area of Swansea, Mark Shane made regional and national news when he and more than 100 others demonstrated on his lawn against the kneeling during the National Anthem of some New England Patriots players as part of a league-wide protest against racism and injustice.

With Shane hoisting large American flags overhead, playing patriotic songs and leading the group in songs to show respect toward the flag, the anthem and American veterans, his publicized counter protest included the burning of Patriots jerseys, T-shirts and gear in protest of the actions of 20 Pats players the prior Sunday.

They were burned in a fire pit in the middle of the lawn of Shane’s 16 Gardner Neck Road property.

Shane, 62, a father of four and ardent Patriots fan, would typically attend about four games a year, including the one that prior Sunday when he and his family joined in the boos over the players kneeling.

“Not one game since the Houston game,” Shane quickly said a few days ago when asked if he’s been back to Foxboro.

“Here and there, not a whole game,” he answered when asked if he’s watched the Pats on TV over the past year.

Did he watch the tense, memorable Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles? “No, absolutely not. And that hurt. It was too fresh.”

He admitted to “looking on Facebook periodically” to check the score during the Super Bowl.

Since that citizen protest a year ago, Shane continues to be wrapped up in a court battle over his rights to burn the Patriots shirts on his property where their demonstration took place.

One of four violations under the state non-criminal fire code, issued to Shane the night of the demonstration protest by Swansea Fire Chief Eric Hajder, remains to be adjudicated:

The remaining count is that Shane “failed to follow orders issued by the head of the fire department.”

The disobeying was the burning of the shirts without a permit after being warned he needed a permit and was denied one. The legal counsel defending the town, attorney Bruce Assad, said the protest was outside the legal burning season, from Jan. 15 to May 1, and therefore exceeded the permit limitations.

Fall River attorney Kenneth Mello, representing Shane without charge, has maintained his stance since two of three remaining violations were appealed and dismissed on Jan. 8 in Southeast Housing Court, leaving one violation.

All four carried $100 fines and Shane was found not responsible on one of the four charges at an initial Swansea municipal hearing last Nov. 30.

Mello appealed the others to the Housing Court in Fall River. On the remaining failure to file orders violation, that court has stayed a decision for one year.

Mello, as the court directed, filed within six months a complaint for declaratory relief on the remaining violation in Bristol County Superior Court.

He wrote in his history of the case that Shane “engaged in the lawful exercise of his Constitutional rights to symbolic free speech, pursuant to the First Amendment …”

Assad in June briefly answered the listed history.

Mello said in a phone interview he planned shortly to file his motions for declaratory judgment. Assad said the town would respond to that. Both said they’d return to the Housing Court in January to continue the case.

“Mark has done a legitimate expression of freedom of speech,” Mello said.

Asked if he thought they would win on this final count, Mello said, “I really do.”

Shane was more emphatic about his chances. “I’m very, very confident we will win the appeal,” he said.

He also said he “couldn’t imagine” why town public safety officials took the steps they did to close roads leading to the Main Street village and his home, block off parking and bring dozens of town and regional police detail officers to the event.

“There was not one arrest, not one problem, not one shred of violence,” Shane said. He said the crowd would have been larger if access had not been so tightly restricted.

Upon request, Swansea officials recently released the payments to town employees. The total was just over $7,500, nearly all of it for town police and support staff.

Twenty-six police department staff received $6,951.92, almost all the standard five hours of overtime. Another $403.08 was to staff the two fire stations and provide dispatching by the volunteer department, and $152.24 for the highway department for an employee to keep its building open for restroom/staging area access, according to listings from the departments.

Police Chief George Arruda said the day after the demonstration, “I had great concerns about counter protests.” Without giving specifics, he said there had been threats on social media.

He enlisted 10 detectives and 12 bicycle officers from the Southeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council of 32 communities that includes Swansea to join their officers on alert.

“In this day and age, I have one opportunity,” Arruda had said, “to keep everybody safe… my objective was to make sure the protesters and the public were safe.”

When Shane was asked how he views the New England Patriots these days, his attitude has modified.

“My approach toward the Patriots is lukewarm,” he said. “The Pats have done nothing to my knowledge to be disrespectful to the veterans, the flag or the anthem.”

He believes the NFL’s stance toward a player protesting in a similar fashion “is a very weak approach.”

Although he’s not returned to Foxboro in a year, with the Patriots just 1-2 as they host the Miami Dolphins Sunday, Shane admitted he’s thinking about it. “I’m getting weak,” he said laughing.

"I'm looking forward to being done with it."

Email Michael Holtzman at mholtzman@heraldnews.com or call him at 508-676-2573.