Ben Garbacz/Daily Mining Gazette Around 900 flags were stolen from a memorial display put up by a Michigan Tech group, Young Americans for Freedom . The flags were thrown into nearby trash bins shortly after the display was completed. The green space before the flags indicate where the stolen flags once stood. A suspect in the flag thefts was arraigned Wednesday.

HOUGHTON — After a nearly two-week long investigation, a suspect in the theft of hundreds of flags, part of a 9/11 memorial, appeared in court this week.

Avery Brynn Lawrence, 21, was arraigned Wednesday in 97th District Court for the 9/11 memorial vandalism of the flag display on the Walker Lawn at Michigan Technological University. She is facing a misdemeanor charge of malicious destruction of tombs and monuments, which can result up to a year in jail and a fine up to $2,000.

On the morning of Sept. 11 the student group Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) set up the annual memorial consisting of 2,977 small American flags, each representing a life lost to the terror attacks on September 11, 2001. Members of YAF got up at 4 a.m. to place the flags on the lawn and finished around 6:30 a.m. Within an hour after the flags were placed Lawrence allegedly stole 900 flags and signs near the memorial. The flags were found in a nearby garbage can.

At her arraignment Wednesday Lawrence stood mute, and Judge Nicolas Daavettila told her the court will enter a not guilty plea on her behalf.

“We won’t be making a plea offer in this case,” Houghton County Prosecutor Daniel Helmer said. “If she would like to plead guilty, she would be eligible for the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, but given the context there will not be a plea offer extended at any point.”

While according to Michigan Tech web pages, Lawrence was an Environmental Engineering major who earned a spot on the MTU Dean’s list at least twice — Fall ’23 and Spring ’25, a university spokesperson told the Gazette, “In keeping with University policy and federal law, Michigan Technological University does not comment on individual student conduct matters. However, we can confirm this student is not enrolled at the university.”

Lawrence is set for pre-trial conference on Oct. 20 in 97th District Court.