Trooper caught on dashcam pulling over to save American flag on highway

A highway patrol officer from Nevada has gone viral for his keen eye and good deed. 

While patrolling a Las Vegas highway, the trooper noticed something lying on the shoulder. "He circled back around and found an American Flag on this side of the road," Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) wrote on Facebook. "The Trooper, who is also military veteran collected the flag and immediately brought the Stars and Stripes to a local American Legion Lodge."

NHP also shared video captured by the officer's dashcam, which shows him stopping his car and retrieving the flag. By midday Friday, it had been viewed more than 60,000 times.

The local American Legion holds proper flag retirement ceremonies every six months, according to NHP. 

Respecting the American flag also involves knowing how to properly dispose of one when it is damaged. "The Flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem of display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning," according to the United States Flag Code (4 USC Sec 8 Para (k) Amended 7 July 1976). To mark Flag Day last year, CBS Philadelphia shared a guide on how to properly dispose of American flags.

This trooper is not the first person to gain widespread recognition for his proper handling of the flag. In 2018, a photo of three boys folding an American flag in Hayden, Idaho, went viral. Many praised the boys for their efforts to protect the flag. 

The same year, a FedEx driver was praised for folding a flag that fell on a customer's lawn. The good deed was captured on the homeowner's security camera and went viral, CBS Baltimore reported.