Federal judge slaps down lawsuit by expelled Tennessee Democrat
A federal judge in Tennessee dismissed a lawsuit that a Democratic state representative filed against several of his Republican colleagues regarding his expulsion and eventual reinstatement as a lawmaker in 2023.
U.S. District Court Judge Eli Richardson for the Middle District of Tennessee wrote a 52-page opinion slapping down Tennessee state Rep. Justin Jones’ lawsuit for a lack of legal standing.
Jones had claimed in the suit that his four-day expulsion caused him financial and professional harm, that he was denied due process and that his punishment was more severe than his White colleague because he is a Black man.
“Plaintiff has not plausibly suggested any ‘continuing, present adverse effects’ as to his committee removals, GOC-seat denial, or the application to him of the 2023 Special Session Rules or the 2024 New Rules,” the judge wrote. “Rather, Plaintiff has engaged in the kind of ‘speculation’ that is ‘insufficient to establish the existence of a present, controversy,’ necessary to permit this Court to exercise Article III standing.”
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Jones was elected to the Tennessee State House in 2023 and was part of the “Tennessee Three” who staged a protest on the House floor for gun reform following the mass shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. The shooting killed three children and three adults.
Jones, along with Democratic state representatives Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson, led chants inside the chamber and disrupted House proceedings.
Jones and Pearson were expelled from the House because of their disruption, while Johnson, who is White, was not. Both Jones and Pearson later won back their House seats.
Republicans in the state House have defended their decision to expel Jones and Pearson at the time, describing their actions as selfish political stunts.
Fox News Digital’s David Spector contributed to this report.
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