The assistant police chief of the Memphis Police Department (MPD) is reportedly still registered to vote and resides in Atlanta, Georgia after nearly three years since accepting the position in Memphis, according to a report by ABC 24.
Atlanta is approximately 400 miles away from Memphis, which is a nearly six-hour drive.
Assistant Police Chief Shawn Jones was hired by MPD in September 2021 after serving with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office in Atlanta since May 2017.
Before that, Jones (pictured above) served with the Atlanta Police Department for 30 years.
Jones is tasked with multiple critical duties within MPD, including managing the department’s budget, human resources, hiring, employee training, policy development, the acquisition of new technology, and the 911 Communications Center.
ABC 24 notes that Jones’ current salary is $177,768 a year.
Despite serving in the second-in-command position at MPD, Georgia voting records reviewed by the outlet show that Jones voted twice in 2024, most recently on May 21, 2024, in the Georgia general primary election with an early voting in-person ballot.
When questioned about Jones’ residency, ABC 24 received a response from the mayor’s office and MPD, both of which said, “Shawn Jones’ primary residence is still in the state of Georgia. Tennessee state law does not permit restrictions on the residency of first responders.”
In 2022, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a bill, SB 0029/HB 0105, prohibiting local governments from dismissing, disciplining, fining, or penalizing a first responder employed by a local government or denying employment to a person applying to be a first responder, based on where the first responder or person applying to be a first responder resides.
First responders covered by the 2022 law include full-time law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and dispatchers of law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical service departments.
The law, however, does not apply to the chief or head of first responder departments.
Despite this, city leaders across Memphis are troubled by Jones’ primary residency being nearly 400 miles from the city.
Memphis Councilwoman Jerri Green was among those speaking out about the assistant police chief’s residency, saying to WREG Memphis, “I am concerned that the number two cop would not be able to be immediately available and I’m not sure whether he’s spending weekends in Atlanta or other times during the week.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Assistant Chief of Police Shawn Jones” by MemphisPD.
