Democratic Virginia attorney general nominee Jay Jones turned a reckless driving charge into political capital by logging community service hours with his own campaign committee.
A state trooper clocked Jones driving 116 mph in a 70 mph zone just after midnight in January 2022, only weeks after he left office as a Norfolk delegate, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Court records show his attorney delayed the case four times before it was resolved through a “deferred deposition,” which let Jones avoid up to a year in jail by performing community service. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Group Launches Campaign To Warn Virginia Voters Giving Democrats ‘One Party Rule’)
He paid a $1,500 fine and completed 1,000 hours of service in 2023, with roughly half credited to work for his political action committee, Meet Our Moment, a group registered with the Virginia Board of Elections but not a nonprofit charity, the outlet reported.
🚨VIRGINIANS DESERVE TO KNOW@jonesjay must immediately come clean and provide a FULL accounting of how he spent 500 hours of “community service” provided to his own PAC to avoid jail time.
After Jones was clocked recklessly driving 116mph, selfishly endangering the life of… pic.twitter.com/36jWK46hNr
— Virginia GOP (@VA_GOP) October 1, 2025
Jones logged the other 500 hours with the NAACP Virginia State Conference. That same year, he was tied to a lawsuit the state NAACP filed against Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration seeking access to the Virginia voting rights restoration database — litigation Jones has spotlighted on the campaign trail.
A statement verifying Jones’ hours with his PAC was allegedly signed by his longtime adviser, Lesley Shinbaum Stewart, according to the Times-Dispatch.
As we meet folks across the Commonwealth, we’re hearing concerns about the same issues: rising costs of healthcare, groceries, housing, and attacks on abortion access. pic.twitter.com/CJrkSmVyYw
— Jay Jones (@jonesjay) September 30, 2025
“Several years ago, I made the mistake, and I regret it,” Jones said in a statement to the Daily Caller. “I accepted responsibility, paid the fine, and completed my obligations to the court — which were approved by the New Kent County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and the judge.”
His campaign did not answer questions about whether his service with the PAC or the Virginia NAACP counted toward those hours.
Jones previously ran for attorney general in 2021, losing the Democratic primary to then-incumbent Mark Herring, who was later defeated by Republican Jason Miyares in the general election.
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