US Rep. Tim Burchett sued for tweet falsely identifying man as Chiefs parade shooter

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) is being sued over a social media post incorrectly identifying a Kansas resident as a suspect in the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting, a complaint filed Monday shows.

Amidst the commotion of the fatal Feb. 14 shooting, Burchett posted a photo of Denton Loudermill on X, falsely saying he was one of the shooters and claiming Loudermill is an undocumented immigrant. The Congressman later took down the post and acknowledged it was incorrect.

In the complaint filed in federal court, Loudermill alleged this constituted a "false light invasion of privacy" under Kansas state law.

Loudermill is asking for $75,000 for emotional distress due to the "highly offensive" nature of Burchett's accusations. Burchett declined to comment to Knox News, part of the USA TODAY Network, citing the ongoing litigation.

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6 charged in Kansas City Super Bowl parade shooting, Loudermill not one of them

On Feb. 14, a shooting broke out as Chiefs fans gathered in Kansas City to celebrate their team's Super Bowl 58 victory.

The incident killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a mother of two and local DJ, and injured more than 20 others.

Prosecutors believe an argument broke out among some people at the parade, and one of them pulled out a firearm, leading to multiple shots fired. Six total people have been charged in connection to the shooting:

• Lyndell Mays, 23, Terry Young, 20, and Dominic M. Miller, 18, were charged with second-degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.

• A 15-year-old boy was charged with unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action

• Two other juveniles detained on "gun-related and resisting arrest charges"

Prosecutors said everyone who fired shots has been identified and brought into custody, but they expect to issue more charges.

Lawsuit against Burchett alleges tweet was 'false' and 'circulated widely'

Loudermill was detained at the parade because he was suspected of being drunk in public, but he was released and police never suspected he had a connection to the shooting. He was also born in the U.S., the filing stated.

But Burchett shared a photo of him in handcuffs at the parade, with the caption "one of the Kansas City Chiefs victory parade shooters has been identified as an illegal Alien."

Loudermill said in his lawsuit that Burchett's false accusations caused him mental distress and emotional suffering after receiving death threats.

Burchett's words in the post, the lawsuit says, "were false and were circulated widely among defendant’s followers."

Burchett's tweet was reposted by more than 2,000 people and was interacted with by at least 4,000, Knox News previously reported.

"(Burchett) knew or should have known that his inflammatory post on social media would be seen and read nationwide, including in Kansas where the subject of his post was a resident," the lawsuit says.

Who is Rep. Tim Burchett?

Tim Burchett is a Congressman representing the eastern part of Tennessee, including Knoxville and Maryville.

He has held office since January 2019 after serving as the mayor of Knox County for eight years prior.

The Republican was one of eight who voted to oust former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, saying he received a condescending comment from McCarthy that swayed his vote.

He has been vocal about his concerns on the border, withholding his vote a for a government spending bill last month "unless we completely close our southern border."

Contributing: Minnah Arshad; USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rep. Tim Burchett sued over Twitter post on Chiefs parade shooter