Missouri AG will defend senators sued for defamation over reports of the Chiefs parade shooting. •Missouri Independent

Republican senators facing a federal defamation lawsuit over social media posts falsely identifying a Kansas man as the shooter at the Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade will be represented by the Missouri attorney general’s office .

Jeremiah Morgan, deputy attorney general, is listed in court documents as the attorney for Sen. Rick Brattin, who along with two other members of the Missouri Freedom Caucus — Sens. Denny Hoskins and Nick Schroer — were indicted last month for identifying social media posts Denton Loudermill of Olathe, Kansas, misidentified as an undocumented immigrant and the shooter at the Chief’s parade.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Andrew Bailey confirmed that all three senators are represented by the state.

The attorney general’s role in the lawsuits was first reported Thursday evening by Missouri Scout.

The defamation lawsuits should be dismissed, the attorney general’s office said in a motion filed Thursday. because the senators were acting in their official capacity when they posted their messages on social media. Therefore, they are protected by ‘legislative immunity’. The messages falsely claiming Loudermill was an undocumented immigrant were addressed to the president, the attorney general’s office argues, and referred to border security.

State legislatures “shall not be restrained by judicial interference or distorted by the fear of personal liability” when speaking publicly on issues of national importance,” the motion to dismiss states reads.

Three Missouri senators have been sued for defamation over reports of shootings at the Chiefs parade

Loudermill was briefly detained when violence broke out during the parade because he was too slow to leave the area.

The first social media account to accuse Loudermill of being the shooter and being in the country illegally was on an account on X, formally known as Twitter, called Deep Truth Intel. That post, which featured a seated photo of Loudermill in handcuffs, incorrectly identified him with a name related to misinformation posted after other shootings, including an October mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, that left 18 dead.

Shortly after that first social media post, the Missouri Freedom Caucus, Hoskins, Brattin and Schroer posted their own versions.

“These are three people arrested during the parade…at least one of those arrested is an illegal immigrant. CLOSE OUR BORDERS!” the Missouri Freedom Caucus posted on X.

The message has now been deleted. The Missouri Freedom Caucus also tried to retract its error, linking to a KMBC post about Loudermill’s attempt to clear his name.

“Denton is originally from Olathe, father of three and a proud @Chiefs fan,” the post read. “He’s not a mass shooter. Footage of him being held for being drunk and not walking away from the scene during the Chiefs meeting has been circulated online. He just wants to clear his name.”

Hoskins’ version on X shared a screenshot of the Deep Truth Intel post and blamed President Joe Biden and Kansas City political leaders for making the shooting possible.

“Fact – President Biden’s open border policies and cities promoting themselves as sanctuary cities like #Kansas City are inviting illegal, violent immigrants to the US,” Hoskins said.

That post has been deleted, but in a Feb. 14 post without a photo, Hoskins wrote that “information I have seen” states that “at least one of the alleged shooters is an illegal immigrant and all three arrested are repeat offenders.”

Hoskins capped this with “IF THIS IS RIGHT” and repetition of conservative rhetoric to stop immigration and rein in cities that help immigrants, blaming the crime on “catch and release policies of liberal cities.”

Brattin’s initial post linking Loudermill to the shooting has since demanded “#POTUS CLOSE THE BORDER” and included the deleted Deep Truth Intel post.

Schroer was the least certain post about Loudermill’s immigration and arrest status among the three now charged.

Schroer’s message included a link to a message from Burchett that, above Loudermill’s photo, stated that “one of the shooters at the Kansas City Chiefs victory parade has been identified as an illegal alien.”

“Can we get confirmation or denial of this from local officials or law enforcement?” Schroer wrote about The people deserve answers.”