TBA Law Blog


Posted by: David Lazar on May 21, 2026

A Tennessee man will receive $835,000 from Perry County after he was jailed for 37 days for posting on social media about the assassination of political commentator Charlie Kirk, The Associated Press reports. Lexington resident Larry Bushart was arrested in September after refusing to take down Facebook memes that joked about Kirk's killing. The post that prompted his arrest referenced President Donald Trump's 2024 comments after a school shooting in Iowa. Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems claimed the meme amounted to a threat of mass violence for the local high school, which shares the name of the Iowa school. Bushart and his attorneys dispute that claim. As part of the settlement, the 61-year-old will drop the federal civil rights lawsuit he filed against the county for violating his constitutional rights. While Bushart, a former police officer, was in jail, he lost his post-retirement job, missed his wedding anniversary and was not present for the birth of his granddaughter.