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A Tennessee man who was jailed for more than a month after refusing to take down a Facebook meme poking fun at the assassination of Charlie Kirk will be paid $850,000 as part of a settlement with officials.
Larry Bushart, a 61-year-old retired police officer, spent 37 days behind bars under a $2 million bond before authorities dropped the felony charge against him in October.
While in jail, he lost his post-retirement job and missed both his wedding anniversary and the birth of his granddaughter, according to a federal lawsuit Bushart filed against Perry County, Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems and the investigator who obtained his arrest warrant.
“I am pleased my First Amendment rights have been vindicated,” Bushart said in a Wednesday statement announcing the settlement. The statement was provided by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), the organization that helped represent him in the case.
“The people’s freedom to participate in civil discourse is crucial to a healthy democracy. I am looking forward to moving on and spending time with my family,” he added.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Perry County Mayor John Carroll for comment.
Bushart was arrested in September, after he refused to remove a Facebook meme that joked about Kirk being killed while speaking to college students in Utah.
The meme that led to his arrest featured an image of President Donald Trump alongside the words, “We have to get over it,” captioned with, “This seems relevant today…” The meme explained that the quote was originally said by Trump in 2024, following a school shooting at Perry High School in Iowa.
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However, the arrest warrant was based on the “absurd notion” that the meme could be interpreted as a threat against Perry County High School in Tennessee, FIRE said.
Furthermore, the organization noted that Bushart did not create or alter the meme.
Weems told news outlets that the meme did not actually lead investigators to believe there was a real threat. However, he stated that the case hinged on how some people could potentially interpret it as a threat to a local school.
“No one should be hauled off to jail in the dark of night over a harmless meme just because the authorities disagree with its message,” said FIRE senior attorney Adam Steinbaugh. “We’re pleased that Larry has been compensated for this injustice, but local law enforcement never should have forced him to endure this ordeal in the first place.”
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FIRE noted that hundreds of Americans have been censored for their online speech following Kirk’s assassination. The group currently represents Monica Weeks, a public servant who was fired by the state for a Facebook post criticizing Kirk shortly after his death.
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