Justin Jones, the Nashville activist who disrupted a rally for then-U.S. Senate Republican candidate Marsha Blackburn, is scheduled to have his day in court next month.
Jones, a Vanderbilt Divinity School student, will have a hearing January 11 at 8:30 a.m. That hearing is scheduled to take place at the Davidson County Criminal Court, said Stephen Hayslip, spokesman for Davidson County District Attorney General Glenn Funk.
Jones’ hearing was originally scheduled for last Friday before it was reset, Hayslip said.
As reported, Jones said he only attended the Blackburn rally, in late October, to hear what Blackburn, now the U.S. Sen.-elect, had to say. Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was the event’s keynote speaker.
Blackburn held the event at the Ray Stevens’ CabaRay Showroom in Nashville.
As The Star reported, however, organizers recognized Jones as someone with a history of causing trouble at other political events and gave him a direct order to leave.
Jones refused and later claimed the police officers who showed up to force him out wanted to beat him. He also denied Tennessee Republican Party officials’ claim he intentionally went to the rally to cause a scene. Jones, who identifies as African-American, said GOP officials singled him out because of his race.
Metro Nashville Police took Jones into custody that day and drove him downtown. Nashville Night Court Commissioner Carolyn Piphus refused law enforcement’s request to issue an arrest warrant to Jones on charges of criminal trespassing, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct, as reported by The Tennessee Star. All three charges are misdemeanors.
Later that week, as reported, members of Funk’s office reviewed available evidence, including videos of Jones’ behavior. They agreed with law enforcement that arrest warrants were appropriate, said Nashville Police Spokesman Don Aaron, in late October.
Jones surrendered himself for booking, and authorities charged him with criminal trespassing and resisting arrest.
For unknown reasons, authorities decided not to go forward with the disorderly conduct charge, Aaron said.
Hayslip said the new warrants came about after Assistant District Attorney Deb Smith presented the case against Jones to Judge Melissa Blackburn — who is of no relation to Marsha Blackburn.
Judge Blackburn found probable cause and issued the warrant against Jones, Hayslip said.
“It is believed that this is only the second time that the DA’s office has taken this kind of action where a night court magistrate’s ruling is overridden by a general sessions judge,” Hayslip said in late October.
“The other case is Andrew Delke.”
Delke, as many news outlets have already reported, is the white police officer caught on video shooting and killing Daniel Hambrick. Authorities charged Delke with criminal homicide.
Jones said on his Facebook page that the charges were politically motivated.
As The Tennessee Star reported, Jones harassed former Republican State Sen. Mae Beavers last year. Jones said he plans to visit Blackburn’s office after she takes the oath as a U.S. senator early next year.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
[…] and Harris, of course, made national headlines last October for allegedly disrupting a Marsha Blackburn rally in Nashville where Republican U.S. […]
[…] a story that made national headlines, Jones caused a scene at a campaign rally for then-U.S. Senate Republican candidate Marsha […]
One of the commenters below is thanking various persons for this needed prosecution due to their subsequent actions when initially Night Court Magistrate Piphus was not helpful in this case. And I too want to thank and give credit to these other law enforcement and prosecutorial people for their good offices in this matter.
But additionally, I would like to thank The Tennessee Star, and its reporter, Chris Butler, for continuing to focus attention upon this case. I am satisfied that if not for this continuing press attention, there is a very real likelihood that not much would have resulted from the ongoing, unending antics of the ‘Reverend’ as such faded into the background of ‘a thousand other issues’ competing for the public’s attention during these last few months.
I am tired of ‘mob rule’ intimidation tactics by Marxists and leftist political thugs and ‘activists’ who intentionally engage in such behavior to try to effect political outcomes. This type of behavior is intolerable in a representative democracy.
The ‘Reverend’ has already abundantly demonstrated that he intends to continue to act as he has done for the last few years if not prevented from doing so by law enforcement authorities. I trust that the judicial authorities of the community will recognize that the ‘kid glove’ treatment is not appropriate in this case given this man’s history of public disturbance tactics for political effect.
Get him off of the streets, and even better than that, get him out of the community. Ideally, make him want to go back to California–where he obviously belongs–and stay there.
Vanderbilt “Divinity” School should have it’s accreditation pulled.
This person was just being a good Bolshevik. Lenin called his “useful idiots”.
Carolyn Piphus should be removed as a magistrate, permanently. It’s catch and release of criminals such as Jones that is coming back to haunt us on the streets of Nashville. If there had not been persistence for justice by the police department and the DA’s office this would never have been brought back before a general sessions judge..This.Jones punk you can either release him and deal with him from now on or put him away until he grows up (which may be never).
This young lady should be ashamed of herself.