Livestreamer ‘Chud the Builder’ detained after Tennessee courthouse shooting: ‘Had to defend myself’

CLARKSVILLE, TENNESSEE: Livestreamer Dalton Eatherly, known online as “Chud the Builder,” was taken into custody after a confrontation outside a Tennessee courthouse on Wednesday, May 13, led to a shooting that left two men injured.

Authorities said both Eatherly and another unidentified man suffered gunshot wounds outside the Montgomery County Courthouse in Clarksville. Both were transported to nearby hospitals and remained in stable condition, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.

Clarksville courthouse shooting leaves two men injured

District Attorney Robert J Nash said Dalton Eatherly and another man were involved in a confrontation that resulted in gunfire outside the courthouse on May 13. Officials have not clarified what caused the altercation or who fired the shots.

The District Attorney’s Office confirmed Eatherly is considered a suspect in the case, though no charges connected to the shooting had been publicly detailed yet.

Eatherly later livestreamed himself speaking to first responders after the incident and said, “I had to defend myself by shooting him.”

He claimed he approached a group of people who were “laughing” and “pointing at me” before the situation escalated.

“He said, ‘You start saying all that chimp out s**t to me and ‘imma hit you,’ and he hit me, he started whaling on me,” Eatherly said in the video.

Residents in Clarksville said Eatherly had become known locally because of his controversial livestreams and confrontational public behavior.

Dalton Eatherly arrested days before courthouse shooting

The shooting came days after Eatherly was arrested in Nashville on May 10 on charges including theft of services, disorderly conduct, and resisting arrest, according to an affidavit cited by CNN.

Authorities alleged Eatherly refused requests from restaurant staff to stop livestreaming inside the establishment and began “making racial statements, yelling, screaming” while causing a disturbance.

According to the affidavit, Eatherly allegedly refused to pay a restaurant bill totaling $371.55 after being asked to leave.

Police later located him walking on a street and arrested him after he allegedly pulled his arm away while officers attempted to handcuff him. He was later released on a $5,000 bond.

Eatherly has drawn criticism online for posting videos containing racist remarks and confrontational encounters.

One recently shared clip allegedly showed Eatherly spraying a chemical agent at a Black man during an altercation after the man knocked a hat off his head. Even some far-right personalities criticized his behavior.

White nationalist Nick Fuentes reportedly said on his podcast that he did not support “that approach of antagonizing people in public.”