KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A man from Kansas trying to clear his name after a congressman from Tennessee and many others falsely accused him on social media of participating in a parade shooting that killed a person and wounded many others.
Two suspects were charged with murder in the deadly shooting, held to celebrate Kansas City's Super Bowl victory. Dominic Miller and Lyndell Mays were charged with second-degree murder and other counts. Soon after the shooting, pictures of Denton Loudermill Jr. in handcuffs were shared on social media accusing him of participating in the shooting.
Loudermill Jr. had been detained and released by police on an unrelated issue. However, Rep. Tim Burchett (R - TN) was one of many who shared the post and falsely accused him of both being the shooter and illegally living in the U.S.
Loudermill Jr.'s family said the posts on social media hurt him, and he is now trying to move away from the narrative.
"He is not a shooter. He is not a shooter and he is not illegal, so walk it back again," said LaRonna Lassiter Saunders, the founder of My Better America, a nonprofit providing legal representation for vulnerable people.
Burchett took down the original social media post and then shared a picture of it, captioning the post. The caption said the post was based on "multiple, incorrect new reports" that said he was illegally living in the U.S.
"I would like people to know I'm Denton Loudermill Jr. I am a good person in life," said Loudermill Jr.
WBIR reached out to Rep. Burchett's office for a statement about the post and was told that since the post was made on an "unofficial social media" account, "all media inquiries about it are being handled by his campaign staff."
Friday afternoon, Burchett's Chief of Staff said the representative did not have anything to say beyond his Feb. 19 post. The full text of that post is available below.
"It has come to my attention that in one of my previous posts, one of the shooters was identified as an illegal alien. This was based on multiple, incorrect news reports stating that. I have removed the post."
