Virginia Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones was convicted of reckless driving in 2022 after police clocked him speeding at 116 miles per hour on a highway at midnight, according to a new report.
A Virginia state trooper pulled over Jones at 12:55 a.m. in January 2022 for driving 46 miles over the speed limit on Interstate 64, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported Wednesday, citing court records of his conviction. The incident occurred just weeks after Jones resigned as a state delegate representing the city of Norfolk and months after his loss in Virginia’s 2021 Democratic primary for attorney general.
Jones’s conviction carried 1,000 hours of community service and a $1,500 fine. While a reckless driving conviction in Virginia can result in up to a year in jail, Jones’s defense team appeared to have struck "an agreement to avoid potential jail time in exchange for doing community service," according to the Times-Dispatch.
The revelation comes as Jones is running again for Virginia attorney general, this time challenging Republican incumbent Jason Miyares in the Nov. 4 election.
"From his professional record to his personal choices, Jay Jones’ reckless disregard for the justice system makes him unfit to be Attorney General," Miyares’s campaign spokesman Alex Cofield said in a statement to the Times-Dispatch.
Jones on Tuesday expressed regret over his speeding conviction. "Several years ago, I made the mistake of speeding, for which I am regretful," Jones said in a statement to the Richmond-based outlet, adding, "I accepted responsibility for my actions, paid the fine, and fulfilled my responsibility to the court."
According to court documents, Jones completed half of the required 1,000 community service hours at his own political action committee, Meet Our Moment. Jones’s longtime adviser, Lesley Shinbaum Stewart, signed the declaration confirming his work for the PAC, the Times-Dispatch reported.
