Tennessee man jailed over Kirk assassination meme hails victory for First Amendment after settlement
A Tennessee man, Larry Bushart, received a settlement after being jailed for posting a controversial meme about Charlie Kirk's assassination. He was held for 37 days and faced a $2 million bail before the charges were dropped. Bushart's case raised questions about the limits of free speech and the interpretation of his posts as threats.
- ▪Larry Bushart was jailed for 37 days over a meme related to Charlie Kirk's assassination.
- ▪He received a settlement of $835,000 after filing a lawsuit against local authorities.
- ▪Bushart's case highlighted the tension between free speech and public safety concerns.
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A Tennessee man was awarded a sweeping settlement after he was targeted for posting a controversial meme following conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination last year. Larry Bushart was jailed for 37 days, and his bail was set at $2 million before authorities dropped a felony charge against him in October, over a month after he posted Facebook memes about Kirk’s killing. Advocates argued the punishment was illegal, as controversial and hate speech is protected speech under the First Amendment. Critics said they interpreted one of the posts as a threat against a local high school and feared a mass shooting.
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