A graphic video being shared on social media shows State Representative Justin Jones (D-Nashville) blocking traffic and assaulting a driver during a riot in the summer of 2020.
The video, first posted in 2021 by local blog Scoop Nashville, shows Jones picking up a traffic cone and jamming it through the driver’s side window of an oncoming car, apparently trying to block the truck from proceeding.
The incident occurred in 2020 outside of the Tennessee Capitol while the far-Left rioted nationwide after a jury ruled Minneapolis career criminal George Floyd was killed by police.
For the incident, Jones was charged with two counts of reckless endangerment. The indictment came nearly a year after Jones participated in the riot.
“This is about our right to be engaged citizens in our system of government. This is about our to right to challenge an entrenched white power structure in its variety of forms from the State Capitol to the District Attorney’s Office,” Jones said on Twitter after news of the indictment.
He claimed he was not violent.
“They will try to push a false narrative portraying me as “’violent’ as a way to deflect from their own actions. They will suggest that I am out of order,” he said. “That is their strategy. However, I’m hopeful for the chance to present our evidence in a transparent manner.”
They will try to push a false narrative portraying me as “violent” as a way to deflect from their own actions. They will suggest that I am out of order. That is their strategy. However, I’m hopeful for the chance to present our evidence in a transparent manner.
7/
— Rep. Justin Jones (@brotherjones_) June 23, 2021
A photo of Jones standing on a car during a Black Lives Matter riot the same summer is also circulating the net:
TN Rep. Justin Jones standing on top of a police car during a BLM riot in June 2020: pic.twitter.com/jexFQD7uvc
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) April 11, 2023
Jones has reportedly been charged with more than a dozen crimes stemming from his days as an “activist.”
Though he says he is nonviolent, some of those charges include assault, assault on an officer, and reckless endangerment charges.
Those alleged crimes, along with others including resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and criminal trespass, can be found on Jones’ lengthy rap sheet:
Jones has been the subject of massive controversy in the Tennessee State Legislature.
Last week, he was expelled from the Tennessee House of Representatives for his role in a Capitol riot the week before.
However, on Monday, he was reinstated by the Metro Nashville Council on an interim basis, until a special election is held to fill the seat permanently.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter.
Photo “Justin Jones” by Scoop Nashville.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that a Minneapolis jury ruled George Floyd was killed by police.
