Perry County, Tennessee, will pay $835,000 to settle a federal lawsuit brought by a retired police officer who was jailed for more than a month over Facebook $META memes he posted following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Authorities eventually dismissed the felony charge against Bushart, 61, after he had already been locked up for 37 days, the Associated Press reported. Among the personal costs documented in the December federal complaint — which named Perry County, its sheriff, and the warrant-seeking investigator as defendants — were Bushart's loss of a postretirement job, a missed wedding anniversary, and his absence for the birth of a grandchild.
The meme that led to his arrest read "This seems relevant today..." and displayed a quote attributed to President Donald Trump — "We have to get over it" — in response to a 2024 school shooting at Perry High School in Iowa. According to Sheriff Nick Weems, who spoke to various news outlets, community members grew alarmed by the school shooting meme specifically, interpreting it as a threat to a nearby institution that shares the Perry County High School name — despite Weems's own admission that he recognized the post as a reference to the Iowa shooting.
"Investigators believe Bushart was fully aware of the fear his post would cause and intentionally sought to create hysteria within the community," Weems said in a statement to The Tennessean last year, according to the AP.
Bail was fixed at $2 million before Bushart's eventual release. Nationally, Kirk's death had triggered job losses for numerous people who commented about it on social media, but the AP noted that cases like Bushart's — where such speech resulted in an actual criminal charge — were considered unusual.
In a statement announcing the settlement, Bushart said he was pleased his First Amendment rights had been vindicated. The settlement also drew a pointed statement from Cary Davis, who served as one of Bushart's attorneys through the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Davis cast the result as a nationwide caution to police and prosecutors, telling the AP: "Our hope is that Larry's settlement sends a message to law enforcement across the country: Respect the First Amendment today, or be prepared to pay the price tomorrow."
A message seeking comment from Perry County Mayor John Carroll had not received a response by publication time, the Los Angeles Times reported.