BENTON — After deliberating for 55 minutes Wednesday, six federal jurors in Benton unanimously rejected a First Amendment lawsuit brought by Zachary Chesser.

According to U.S. Attorney Donald S. Boyce, Chesser’s lawsuit claimed that his former unit manager and case manager from the United States Penitentiary in Marion unlawfully retaliated against him for drafting an e-mail while he was incarcerated there in 2012.

Chesser appeared at the trial by video from the administrative maximum-security penitentiary in Florence, Colorado. He is currently serving a 25-year sentence for communicating threats against the writers of television show South Park, as well as soliciting violent jihadists to desensitize law enforcement, and attempting to provide material support to al Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist organization.

The civil division of the U.S. Attorney’s office is responsible for defending federal officials who face civil lawsuits arising out of the course and scope of their official duties.

The trial was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam E. Hanna and Senior Attorney Katherine Siereveld of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.