Tennessee Settles Over Meme Arrest, Retired Officer Paid Up To $850K
Settlement ends lawsuit after Larry Bushart spent 37 days jailed over a Facebook meme about Charlie Kirk's assassination.
FOX NewsTennessee man jailed 37 days over Facebook meme mocking Charlie Kirk's death wins $850K settlement
Straight Arrow NewsTennessee officials will pay $835,000 for jailing man over Charlie Kirk meme
AlterNetTennessee man wins massive settlement over being jailed for Charlie Kirk meme
ReasonA Tennessee man jailed for 37 days because of an anti-Trump meme will get $835,000 for his trouble
Overview
Tennessee officials will pay roughly $835,000 to $850,000 to settle a lawsuit by Larry Bushart, who spent 37 days jailed after posting a Facebook meme about Charlie Kirk's assassination, his lawyers said.
Bushart was arrested in September after refusing to remove a meme that quoted Donald Trump about a 2024 Perry, Iowa, school shooting, and a prosecutor later declined to pursue charges.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression said the arrest violated Bushart's First Amendment rights, while Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems said investigators believed the post could be interpreted as threatening and alarmed residents.
Bushart's bail was set at $2 million, he lost his post-retirement job, missed his wedding anniversary and the birth of his granddaughter, and charges were later dropped, according to his federal lawsuit.
As part of the settlement, Bushart agreed to drop his federal civil rights case against Sheriff Nick Weems, investigator Jason Morrow and Perry County.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources present this coverage neutrally: they rely on attributed quotes from both the sheriff and the plaintiff's lawyer, avoid loaded language themselves, and supply factual context (arrest, bail, settlement, lost job). Any charged terms appear as source content, not editorial framing.