In May 2017, comedian Kathy Griffin drew criticism from liberals and conservatives alike when she appeared in photographs holding the fake severed head of President Donald Trump. Amid the fallout, the ‘satirical’ web site The Last Line of Defense published an article claiming that the comedian had been shot and killed while trying to escape custody:



The FBI took Kathy Griffin into custody without issue this morning in West Tisdale. Griffin, who is under suspicion of radicalizing American kids to join the jihadist movement, decided to do something incredibly stupid, however, when she tried to run from agents at a rest stop just outside of Delhomme. Agent Judy Nishto, who was on scene to assure that Griffin’s rights as a female were being adhered to, ended up firing the shot that brought Griffin down.

There is no truth to this article. Kathy Griffin was not arrested, she is not recruiting kids to join the jihadist movement, and she was not shot and killed by an FBI agent. The Last Line of Defense is a well-known purveyor of fake news and carries a disclaimer labeling its content as satire:

DISCLAIMER: America’s Last Line of Defense is a satirical publication that uses the imagination of liberals to expose the extreme bigotry and hate and subsequent blind gullibility that festers in right-wing nutjobs. We present fiction as fact and our sources don’t actually exist. Names that represent actual people and places are purely coincidental and all images should be considered altered and do not in any way depict reality. In other words, if you believe this crap you’re a real dumbass.

Following Griffin’s photo shoot, the comedian lost her job at CNN and several venues cancelled upcoming appearances.