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 +0.38% 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.
