Jonathan Hullihan, president and general counsel of Remnant Law, said he sees a serious threat to free speech after the arrest of a Hood County activist accused of posting a satirical meme.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Granbury activist Kolton Krottinger faced arrest on November 5 for “online impersonation,” according to jail records. The case centers on a meme he allegedly posted on social media that local authorities claim violated Texas Penal Code §33.07.
Hullihan told The Dallas Express the arrest represents “a grave overreach that directly challenges the core protections of the First Amendment.” He said the meme appeared on a clearly labeled satirical page and served as humorous commentary on local politics. He argued that treating the post as a criminal act “ignores the intent requirement of the law but also imposes a chilling effect on online discourse.”
He said authorities held several other options short of criminal prosecution. He said officials could have reported the post to Facebook moderators, who, according to Hullihan, protect satire under the platform’s 2021 “satire exception” policy. Instead, officials filed felony charges and added a social media ban as a bond condition. Hullihan called the decision “a tactic of lawfare, the misuse of legal tools to silence dissent.”
Hullihan said Texas courts already instruct officials to apply the online impersonation statute narrowly to avoid infringement on protected speech. He cited Ex parte Maddison (2017), which struck down the previous version of the law as unconstitutionally overbroad, and Ex parte Lowry (2022), which upheld the statute but required proof of specific intent to harm.
“As I understand it, this meme was obvious satire recognized by locals and fails to meet the statute’s thresholds for deception or harm,” Hullihan said.
He said the sheriff’s office could have relied on Facebook’s internal moderation system, which reviews labeling, context, and audience understanding before applying enforcement. He argued that authorities bypassed that process and signaled “a deliberate effort to intimidate and silence speech, which is dangerous to core constitutional protections.”
Hullihan criticized Sheriff Roger Deeds for later urging residents to file more social media complaints, citing “bullying and harassment” without details. Hullihan compared the request to historical surveillance systems, saying it “echoes the Soviet Union’s informant system under Stalin.”
“If this arrest is indeed retaliatory, accountability must be swift.”
Hullihan said the incident comes as some lawmakers push to weaken the Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA), the state’s anti-SLAPP law that protects citizens from lawsuits meant to silence them. He said bills such as SB 336 and HB 2988 could “gut these defenses” by removing attorney fee awards and discovery stays.
“Preserving the TCPA is crucial,” Hullihan said. He added that it “allows early dismissals and fee recovery, leveling the field for activists against deep-pocketed opponents and preventing bankruptcy through litigation. In this case, where a meme led to felony charges instead of platform moderation, despite what Hullihan described as Facebook policies favoring contextual satire, the TCPA’s strength ensures Texans can speak without fear.”
Hullihan said the case should warn Texans who value open discourse. “If unaddressed,” he said, “it sets a dangerous precedent, turning Texas into a state where political humor invites prosecution, undermining the vibrant exchange of ideas, protected speech, and sends a chilling effect to the general public when they desire to speak out on matters of public concern.”
The Dallas Express reached out to the Hood County Sheriff’s Office for comment but did not receive a response.