MEMPHIS, Tenn. — There has been fallout after news broke out that the Memphis Police Department's second-in-command lives in Georgia.
ABC24 first reported about the questions surrounding the legal residence of assistant police Chief Shawn Jones on Tuesday.
Jones has voted three times in Georgia since becoming the MPD's assistant chief, including the Dec. 6, 2022, general/special election runoff, March 12, 2024, the presidential primary, and May 21, 2024, in the Georgia general primary election. All three times, Jones voted early and in person.
Former patrolman Mike Williams, who spent 10 years as head of the Memphis Police Association before stepping down in 2020, said that if it is true that Assistant Chief Jones is not a full-time Tennessee resident, he needs to be held accountable. He also sees this as a fireable offense.
"If that was an officer, they would hold him accountable, and Shawn Jones should be held accountable as well," Williams said.
It is unclear if Jones rents property in Memphis, as rental records are not publicly available. According to Tennessee voting records, Jones is also not registered to vote in the State of Tennessee.
We attempted to contact City Council Chairman J.B. Smiley—and all other council members—for comment, but the only member that got back to us was Councilwoman Jerri Green.
“I’m curious to know when Chief Davis knew or when Mayor Young knew," Green said.
Councilwoman Green told ABC24 this latest revelation is just another “piece of a problematic puzzle with Chief Davis," who brought Jones into MPD after working with him in Atlanta.
“Is he paying taxes in Georgia? Is he paying taxes in Tennessee?" Williams asked. "Morale is already down on the police department and, from a lot of the individuals I talk to, a lot of is attributed to Shawn Jones. I think that's one of the asks that the Memphis Police Association had to the mayor: 'If in fact, you're going to retain Chief Davis, we want you to get rid of Shawn Jones, because he is a stain at this time.'"
On July 8, 2024, MPD announced that Jones was no longer with the department.