Jury finds former Sheriff Clarke’s Facebook taunts didn’t violate free speech

A federal jury ruled that ex-Sheriff David Clarke’s Facebook posts taunting a man he met on an airplane did not violate the man’s right to free speech, The Associated Press reported Monday.

The jury found that Clarke’s posts did not go far enough to chill the man’s future speech, according to the AP.

{mosads}Daniel Black charged in a civil suit that the former Milwaukee County, Wis., sheriff and prominent President Trump supporter had abused his authority to harass Black after an interaction on an airplane last January.

Clarke allegedly ordered six sheriff’s deputies to take Black aside and question him upon arrival in Milwaukee, after Black showed disapproval of Clarke on a plane.

Clarke also made Facebook posts taunting Black.

“Cheer up, snowflake … if Sheriff Clarke were to really harass you, you wouldn’t be around to whine about it,” one of Clarke’s posts read. 

A federal judge dismissed many of the charges Black brought against Clarke, but ruled that a jury should decide on Clarke’s Facebook posts.

“While Clarke’s actions reflect poor judgment, they do not shock the conscience,” U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller said in his ruling earlier this month.