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He Was Jailed Over a Charlie Kirk Post. The Sheriff Now Owes Him $835,000. (New York Times Gift Article)
Larry Bushart sued a Tennessee sheriff who claimed he wanted to incite hysteria with a post after Mr. Kirk’s killing and jailed him for 37 days.
Link to tweet
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/20/us/larry-bushart-charlie-kirk-facebook-settlement.html?unlocked_article_code=1.j1A.dtjx.B6huSoSsJ43m&smid=url-share
A Tennessee man who was jailed for 37 days over a Facebook post he shared after the killing of Charlie Kirk has agreed to a $835,000 settlement with the sheriff who detained him, his lawyers said on Wednesday.
The fatal shooting of Mr. Kirk, the conservative activist, last September set off an avalanche of social media commentary across the country. With it came firings, resignations and a debate about the boundaries of free speech. But Larry Bushart, the man arrested in Tennessee, was perhaps the only person charged with a felony after his posts about Mr. Kirk’s death.....
Mr. Bushart, a 61-year-old retired law enforcement officer, is not the only person to successfully seek compensation after being penalized for comments about Mr. Kirk’s death.
In January, a professor at Austin Peay State University in Tennessee reached a $500,000 settlement with the university that also gave him his job back. In Iowa, the state recently agreed to rehire and pay $125,000 to a public defender who had been fired.
Mr. Bushart’s settlement appears to be among the largest so far.
“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,” Adam Steinbaugh, a senior attorney with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech legal advocacy group that represents Mr. Bushart, said in a statement. “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.”
The fatal shooting of Mr. Kirk, the conservative activist, last September set off an avalanche of social media commentary across the country. With it came firings, resignations and a debate about the boundaries of free speech. But Larry Bushart, the man arrested in Tennessee, was perhaps the only person charged with a felony after his posts about Mr. Kirk’s death.....
Mr. Bushart, a 61-year-old retired law enforcement officer, is not the only person to successfully seek compensation after being penalized for comments about Mr. Kirk’s death.
In January, a professor at Austin Peay State University in Tennessee reached a $500,000 settlement with the university that also gave him his job back. In Iowa, the state recently agreed to rehire and pay $125,000 to a public defender who had been fired.
Mr. Bushart’s settlement appears to be among the largest so far.
“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,” Adam Steinbaugh, a senior attorney with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech legal advocacy group that represents Mr. Bushart, said in a statement. “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.”
Charlie Kirk is not a saint and the people attacked for criticizing Kirk were all exercising their First Amendment rights. This award makes me smile
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