ARTICLE UPDATE – 12/18/25:
Larry Bushart Jr., a former police officer who was arrested and jailed for posting a meme on a Charlie Kirk memorial Facebook page, has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, according to the Foundation for Individuals Rights in Education (FIRE).
With support from FIRE, Bushart filed the lawsuit against Perry County, Tenn., and Sheriff Nick Weems for allegedly violating his constitutional rights in retaliation for his protected speech.
“If police can come to your door in the middle of the night and put you behind bars based on nothing more than an entirely false and contrived interpretation of a Facebook post, no one’s First Amendment rights are safe,” said FIRE senior attorney Adam Steinbaugh.
Bushart was arrested at his home and spent 37 days in jail while held on a $2 million bond. FIRE says Bushart subsequently lost his job and missed the birth of a grandchild.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE – 11/10/25:
PERRY COUNTY, Tenn. — The Perry County Sheriff’s Office and School System find themselves at the center of a contentious free speech debate following the arrest of former police officer Larry Bushart Jr. The arrest stemmed from an insensitive Facebook post he made about September’s assassination of Charlie Kirk that was perceived by some as a threat to Perry High School.
It has ignited discussions on free speech, community safety, and the implications of new Tennessee school safety laws.
Facebook Post Leads to 5-Week Imprisonment
The controversy began after Bushart, 61, shared a meme on Facebook after Kirk’s murder, featuring a photo of President Donald Trump and a quote: “We have to get over it,” reports the Independent.
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The comment was made by the president one day after a 2024 shooting at Iowa’s Perry High School, where two people were killed and six were injured. Bushart added, “This seems relevant today…” as a caption.
The post — though intended to comment on public reactions to the murder of Kirk and the prevalence of gun violence in America – was interpreted by some Perry County community Facebook group members as a direct threat to their local Perry County High School, despite no explicit link.
In response, Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems initiated an investigation that led to Bushart’s arrest on charges of “Threatening Mass Violence at a School,” despite Weems later admitting that he knew the reference referred to a mass shooting that had happened the previous year in Iowa, according to Wikipedia.
The charges were later dropped due to insufficient evidence after Bushart spent over a month in jail on $2 million bond.
Bushart Case Highlights Tension Between School Safety Laws and First Amendment Rights
Bushart’s arrest brings into focus Tennessee’s stringent laws enacted after the 2023 Covenant School shooting in Nashville, reports the 74. These laws impose severe penalties for threats against schools and require police to assess potential campus threats proactively.
While designed to protect students, these measures have sparked free speech concerns and led to several lawsuits.
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Critics, including the ACLU and the Cato Institute, argue that such laws may infringe on constitutional rights. They point to Bushart’s case as an example of overreach, where the intent of a social media post was misinterpreted, leading to unwarranted legal action.
The arrest is part of a broader attempt by some lawmakers to address what they perceive as inappropriate discourse surrounding high-profile incidents like Kirk’s assassination. This has resulted in actions against individuals nationwide, including educators who claim wrongful termination over their online expressions.
For his part, Sheriff Weems defended the arrest of Bushart, stating, “Investigators believe Bushart was fully aware of the fear his post would cause and intentionally sought to create hysteria within the community.”
