Yellow crime scene tape was flapping in the wind around Millennium Plaza outside the Montgomery County Courthouse yesterday, May 13, as deputies swarmed the area and paramedics worked on two guys who’d been shot.
Bystander videos popped up online almost immediately, showing the chaos: officers moving fast, a stretcher near the building, the whole scene unfolding right there in public.
The shooter was 28-year-old Dalton Eatherly, better known online as “ChudTheBuilder,” a streamer who’s built a following with edgy, provocative livestreams. Police say it started after the second man threw a punch, then Eatherly drew a firearm and shot multiple times. A bullet struck the man in the shoulder, another in the stomach. Blood soaked through Eatherly’s sleeve where a round just clipped his skin. Hospital staff admitted both, their conditions steady by evening.
A tweet from X.
Out of nowhere, Eatherly found himself behind bars facing heavy accusations like trying to commit murder in the first degree, attacking someone badly enough to count as aggravated assault, putting lives at risk with a weapon, then pulling a gun during a crime that could’ve gone worse. Locked up now at Montgomery County Jail, things aren’t looking smooth. His explanation? That the other man swung first, leaving him no way out but to defend himself. A claim rooted in Tennessee’s stand-your-ground rule, where backing down isn’t always expected.
This isn’t Eatherly’s first run-in with the law lately. Just a few days earlier, around May 9-11, he was arrested in Nashville after livestreaming inside Bob’s Steak & Chop House, refusing to pay a $371 bill, and then resisting when cops showed up.
The story blew up fast. Clips from local news like WSMV along with shaky phone footage spread all over X, sparking heated arguments about streamer culture, rage bait content, and where self-defense ends and provocation begins. A lot of people are pointing out that if you go around picking fights for views, claiming “stand your ground” gets a lot messier.
Eatherly had apparently been at the courthouse for a civil debt case when the confrontation went down around 1:15 p.m. Sheriff’s deputies say their quick response kept things from getting even worse.
This situation shows what happens when internet fame meets real anger. When likes turn into fights, someone usually gets hurt. Lawyers point out that claiming self defense might not work if evidence says he started it. If messages or videos prove he pushed things first, the courts may see him differently. Online actions feeding offline danger isn’t new but this case makes it harder to ignore.
Right now, the probe continues. Evidence will be reviewed by those handling cases in the 19th Judicial District. What comes next depends on how things unfold during arraignment and after.
