Jay Jones campaign faces scrutiny over wife’s bail fund donation

Virginia Attorney General candidate Jay Jones faced new political consequences on Friday after a report revealed that his wife had donated to the United States Minnesota Freedom Funda controversial bail organization that used millions of dollars to free violent criminals, including accused rapists and murderers, from prison.

In May 2020, during the unrest in Minneapolis following the death of George Floyd, Mavis Jones posted on Twitter at the time: “I just donated to the Minnesota Freedom Fund,” linking to the group’s donation page and urging others to do the same. The account has since been privatized.

The revelation, first reported by the Washington Free Beaconcomes as Jones, a Democrat, trails the Republican incumbent Jason Miyares in an intensifying race for Virginia’s top law enforcement job. The state’s attorney general oversees state-level law enforcement and police oversight.

The Minnesota Freedom Fund, which was promoted by several progressive figures at the time, including then-Sen. Kamala Harrisraised more than $41 million during 2020 protests and pledged to support protesters arrested in clashes with police. But a FOX 9 Investigation It later emerged that the group had spent most of its money on releasing defendants accused of serious violent crimes rather than minor protest crimes.

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Among those released was Christopher Boswell, a twice-convicted rapist who faced new kidnapping and assault charges. He was released after the fund posted $350,000 bail.

The group also paid $100,000 for the release of Darnika Floyd, who was charged with second-degree murder, and $75,000 for Jaleel Stallings, who allegedly shot at a SWAT team in Minneapolis before being acquitted in court.

Greg Lewin, then the fund’s interim executive director, told FOX 9 that same year: “The last time we were down there, the clerk said, ‘We hate it when you bail out these sex offenders.’ Often I don’t even pay attention to the charges when I bail someone out.

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In one case, the fund posted bail for George Howard, a career criminal who was later charged with fatally shooting a man in a street accident in Minneapolis just weeks after his release.

The news adds to a series of controversies for Jones, 35, who has already apologized for violent text messages to Republican leaders. In one exchange, he wrote that then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert would take “two bullets in the head” and that Gilbert’s wife, Jennifer, should “watch her children die.”

Court records also show Jones was convicted reckless driving in 2022 for traveling at 116 miles per hour on a Virginia highway. He was fined $1,500 and ordered to perform 1,000 hours of community service. However, a state ethics review is examining whether hours he volunteered for his own political committee should count toward the sentence.

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The latest controversy gives Miyares and the Republicans new fodder in the final weeks of the campaign. A Trafalgar Group survey According to the study released Oct. 17, Miyares was leading 49.5% to 44.6%, a reversal from previous polls that had Jones ahead by six points before the texting scandal broke.

As of Friday, Mavis Jones has set her X account to private.

The Minnesota Freedom Fund and the Jay Jones campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.