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Police Remove Unauthorized Confederate Flag Flown In Florida

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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/AP) — On the Fourth of July, when the American flag should be flown high, authorities said someone, without authorization, raised a Confederate flag outside Tallahassee City Hall, which police took down.

Police said in a report released Saturday that an anonymous caller alerted them to the flag found flying Friday afternoon outside City Hall. Police impounded it.

City Hall was closed for the July Fourth weekend. Mayor Andrew Gillum condemned the flag-raising, vowing whoever put the flag up would be held responsible.

"Today we proudly celebrate the founding of our Nation" under a single flag, he said. "While this reprehensible act may have been an attempt to divide us, I know that our community will instead choose to unite and focus on the values that bind us together."

The city hall building is located near the Florida Capitol, where a confederate flag flew until 2001.

(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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