Man sues lawmaker for posts calling him ‘alien,’ ‘shooter’- Denton Loudermill, Jr., a man from Kansas, has filed a defamation lawsuit against Representative Tim Burchett over social media posts that falsely identified him as one of the shooters and an “illegal alien” following a shooting incident in Kansas City following the Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade. The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court in Kansas on March 25, 2024.
Loudermill attended the parade and was mistakenly identified as a shooter by police in the aftermath of the shooting. He was handcuffed and detained for about 10 minutes before being released.
The lawsuit alleges that Burchett shared photos of Loudermill on social media, claiming he was one of the shooters and an “illegal alien.” Burchett later removed the post that referred to Loudermill as an “illegal alien,” but he made another post with the same image that misidentified him as “one of the shooters”.
The lawsuit also mentions that Loudermill has received death threats and suffered mental distress from being falsely identified as an “illegal alien” and “shooter.” Loudermill is seeking $75,000 in damages for acts considered “willful, wanton, reckless, and malicious”.
Burchett’s office has not commented on the pending litigation. However, Burchett admitted to calling Loudermill an “illegal alien” in a social media post on February 19, 2024, and stated that he had removed the post. He attributed the mistake to multiple, incorrect news reports stating that Loudermill was an illegal immigrant.
The lawsuit highlights the potential for significant legal and public relations consequences for public figures who make false statements on social media, especially when those statements can lead to harmful consequences for individuals, such as mental distress and death threats. It underscores the importance of verifying information before sharing it publicly and the potential legal repercussions for making false accusations.
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