ADAMS COUNTY, OHIO — An Ohio jury in Adams County Common Pleas Court found rapper Afroman not liable on any of 13 claims in a lawsuit brought by sheriff's deputies. The deputies filed the civil lawsuit against Afroman in 2023, accusing him of defamation and invasion of privacy.

The lawsuit stemmed from a 2022 raid when deputies served a search warrant at Afroman's home looking for drugs and evidence of a kidnapping. No drugs or evidence of a kidnapping were found and no charges were filed against Afroman. Afroman, whose legal name is Joseph Foreman, testified that he exercised free speech when he released music videos featuring images of Ohio deputies raiding his home.

Judge Jonathan Hein announced, "In all circumstances, the jury finds in favor of the defendant. No plaintiff verdict prevailed. So, the matter will be concluded with defense verdicts." The jury deliberated for less than a day before reaching its verdict.

Following the verdict, Afroman posted a celebratory message on Instagram showing him shouting "We did it America! Yah, we did it, freedom of speech! Right on!" while wearing an American flag-patterned suit. "I got freedom of speech. After they run around my house with guns, kicked down my door, I got the right to kick a can in my backyard, use my freedom of speech, turn my bad times into a good time," Afroman said.

Afroman told jurors the deputies were at fault for raiding his house and should not sue him for that mistake. When asked if anything could change his mind about his creative actions, Afroman asked, "Is there anything that can change my mind about the fact that they shouldn't have been at my house in the first place?"

The deputies claimed the artist was wrong to mock them after they raided his home in a fruitless search for drugs. One of Afroman's songs, "Lemon Pound Cake," includes security camera footage from the 2022 raid and features the lyrics "The Adams County Sheriff kicked down my door." The video has been viewed more than 3.1 million times on YouTube.

Another song contains profanity in its title and implies an extramarital affair between Afroman and the wife of plaintiff Sgt. Randy Walters. "It's horrible," Walters said. "It's hard when your job that you're doing affects your family, which affects you."