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Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones faced new political fallout Friday after a report revealed his wife had donated to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, a controversial bail organization that used millions to spring violent offenders, including accused rapists and murderers, from jail.
In May 2020, during unrest in Minneapolis after George Floyd’s death, Mavis Jones posted on Twitter: “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 gone private.
The revelation, first reported by The Washington Free Beacon, comes as Jones, a Democrat, trails Republican incumbent Jason Miyares in a tightening race for Virginia’s top law enforcement post. The state’s attorney general oversees state-level prosecutions and police oversight.
JAY JONES TEXT SCANDAL SPARKS DONATION SURGE AS GOP GROUP POURS MILLIONS MORE INTO VA RACE
The Minnesota Freedom Fund, promoted at the time by several progressive figures, including Sen. Kamala Harris, raised more than $41 million during the 2020 protests, pledging to support demonstrators arrested during clashes with police.
But a FOX 9 investigation later found the group spent most of its money bailing out defendants accused of serious violent crimes rather than low-level protest offenses.
Jay Jones addresses supporters after winning the Democratic nomination for Virginia attorney general as wife Mavis Jones looks on in Norfolk, Va., June 17, 2025. (Trevor Metcalfe/The Virginian-Pilot/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Among those bailed out was Christopher Boswell, a twice-convicted rapist facing new kidnapping and assault charges who was freed after the fund posted $350,000 in cash bail.
The group also paid $100,000 to release Darnika Floyd, who was charged with second-degree murder, and $75,000 for Jaleel Stallings, who allegedly fired at a Minneapolis SWAT team before being acquitted at…
