ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. – Tony Shepherd, a Navy veteran living in St. Charles County, says he never expected to land in court over his old Christmas tree.

Years ago, he and his wife planted the tree together after their first holiday as a couple. When it died, Shepherd gave it new life, transforming it into a flagpole to honor his military service and fellow veterans.

But St. Charles County officials had already ordered him to remove the dead tree before the conversion.

They cited it as a safety hazard and a violation of county code.

In response, Shepherd turned the tree into a flagpole, hoping the patriotic display would allow it to stay.

“I did not expect to have a judge rule that I have to cut down a flagpole,” Shepherd told FOX 2. “It means a lot to us sentimentally. When we put the flag up on it, patriotically.”

The county says it’s not about the flag; it’s about the fact that the base structure is still a dead tree.

The court has sided with the county, calling Shepherd’s effort a case of “patriotic somersaults.” A county spokesperson told FOX 2 that while they fully support patriotic expression, the dead tree remains a safety concern and now, in their words, an eyesore.

“They say it’s a dead tree; you need to get rid of it. We had dead trees as flagpoles in the 1800s,” Shepherd said. “We have a dead tree right there as a power pole. Are we going to take all of those down?”

Shepherd also has a metal pole in his yard displaying a Trump flag, which he says was never questioned by the court.

“I asked, I’ve got another pole with a Trump flag on it. Are you okay with that? Oh yeah, oh yeah, Trump. So what’s wrong with my American flag? Wrong pole,” he said.

Shepherd has been contesting the issue in court since the fall of 2024.

Last week, he received a final denial. In response, he spoke during public comment at the St. Charles County Council meeting on Monday.

His county representative, Matt Swanson, said the issue deserves more attention.

“There’s no way we are ever going to impede on someone’s ability to hang an American flag,” Swanson said. “This is something I hold dear in my heart. If the ordinances are not in place, then they need to be changed. We are a patriotic county.”

The court imposed a $175 fine and gave Shepherd three months to comply. If he does not, he could face further legal consequences.

For now, he’s on an unsupervised suspended sentence allegedly related to the property maintenance.

Shepherd, however, says this isn’t over.

“The next flag that’s going under this one is ‘Come and Get It.’”