Retired Cop Spent A Month In Jail For Sharing Charlie Kirk Meme

A 61-year-old retired policeman in Tennessee posted a Donald Trump meme after the death of Charlie Kirk. He spent a month in jail.

A retired police officer in Tennessee was arrested and put in jail after sharing a Facebook post about the killing of Charlie Kirk.

After more than five weeks since the incident, he’s planning to sue, his attorney told The Post. https://t.co/1EsSkkTLgn

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) October 31, 2025

From the Washington Post:

As a liberal in a deep-red Tennessee town, 61-year-old Larry Bushart knew the political memes he posted on Facebook tended to ruffle some feathers. He didn’t expect them to land him in jail.

Bushart, a retired police officer, was released from Perry County Jail in Linden, Tennessee, on Wednesday, more than five weeks since he was arrested at home after sharing a Facebook post about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in Utah.

The post quoted President Donald Trump saying “we have to get over it” after a deadly 2024 school shooting in Iowa. Authorities in Perry County had held Bushart on charges of threatening mass violence on school property, which he denied.

Now he’s planning to sue, his attorney Joshua Phillips told The Washington Post on Thursday.

The meme posted by Bushart referenced a school shooting at Perry High School in Iowa, which is 700 miles away.

Nick Weems, the Perry County sheriff who had ordered Bushart’s arrest, says he knew the meme didn’t reference nearby Perry County High School, but investigators were responding to the fears of people in the community who misinterpreted it.

So, he asked Lexington Police to pay Bushart a visit.

The charges were dropped this week because Nashville’s NewsChannel 5 aired a report that included the Lexington officer’s body cam video showing his conversation with Bushart.

More from NewsChannel 5:

Weems initially said Bushart was arrested after officers in his hometown of Lexington, Tenn., went to his house to let him know that his meme was being interpreted as a threat to shoot up Perry County High School in Linden — and Bushart refused to take it down.

But video from that initial encounter on Sept. 21 shows the Lexington officer appeared to be unsure about why a Perry County investigator wanted him to visit Bushart.

In fact, the video shows the Lexington officer never mentioned anything about the post possibly being interpreted as a threat to shoot up Perry County High School.

I can’t recall seeing a case quite like this. A Tennessee man (recently retired from a 33 year career in law enforcement) has been held in jail for over a month for posting this meme on Facebook after Charlie Kirk’s assassination: https://t.co/QMQ9POd3hV pic.twitter.com/CK0mCu6Hn8

— Tyler Valeska (@tbvaleska) October 27, 2025