Dalton Eatherly, the right-wing livestreamer known as “Chud the Builder,” could lose his double-wide trailer while he remains jailed on a $1 million bond in an attempted murder case.
Chud appeared before a Montgomery County judge on Friday seeking a lower bond, but the request was denied after prosecutors raised concerns about his other pending charges in Davidson County. The judge said the bond amount had to remain at least $1 million because Eatherly was already out of jail when some of the alleged conduct occurred.
The case stems from a May 13 shooting involving Joshua Fox. Authorities allege the controversial streamer provoked Fox into an argument that turned physical before the shooting. Fox survived.
Chud’s attorney, Jacob Fendley, argued that the bond was excessive and said public anger toward his client should not drive the court’s decision.
“I understand Mr. Eatherly has caused members of the community to be offended, but that shouldn’t affect bail,” Fendley said. Fendley also called $1 million “a lot for a shooting,” according to The Tennessean, and argued that He was not the primary aggressor and that Fox did not have a legal right to strike his client.
District Attorney General Robert J. Nash told the court that Chud’s livestreaming activity was part of the alleged pattern prosecutors want the judge to consider.
“The facts of this particular case are Mr. Eatherly has a business as ‘Chud the Builder,’ where he goes out to entice and provoke Black people for a response, which is what he did that day,” Nash said, per the news outlet.
If released, Eatherly will be required to stay home each night from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Several people have offered to help post his bond, including a Texas man who offered $500,000, but jail records showed he was still in custody Monday afternoon.