Social media posts, mostly from conservative politicians and commentators, claim Donald Trump was indicted for exercising his freedom of speech after the 2020 US election, and that he has been "threatened" with the death penalty. Both claims are false; the former president was charged with -- and has pleaded not guilty to -- three counts of conspiracy and one count of obstruction, none of which meet the criteria for execution.

"Trump has been charged for practicing free speech & free thought by objecting to a dirty election," says conservative influencer Benny Johnson in an August 1, 2023 post on Twitter, the platform recently rebranded as "X."

The post accumulated tens of thousands of interactions. The title of a related video on Johnson's YouTube page says: "Biden Indicts Trump For Practicing 'Free Speech' On January 6th."

Screenshot from YouTube taken August 3, 2023

Some Republican politicians, including Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Congressman Dan Bishop of North Carolina, have promoted similar claims.

"He's being indicted for saying the election was stolen," Greene said in a video posted August 3, hours before Trump was arraigned at a federal courthouse in Washington.

The claims are inaccurate.

Trump was indicted August 1 by a grand jury on criminal charges that he conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 election and defraud the American people. Two days later, the former president pleaded not guilty.

The 77-year-old had already been...

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