He flipped his middle finger at a war memorial. Then he was shot dead.

Albert Sturgill Jr. was pacing alone at a memorial site for veterans, flipping his middle finger to the American flag and the monuments erected to honor generations of fallen soldiers. He was known for displaying such behavior at the war memorial and in other parts of the small conservative city of Crossville, Tennessee, due to his deep-rooted disdain for the government, resentment from being rejected by the military and possible mental health issues, his family and residents said.