Judge upholds bond amount for man accused of killing Memphis chef
Dozens of friends and family members of Jody Moyt exhaled in unison Thursday after Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Chris Craft upheld a $1,000,000 bond for the man accused of killing the chef.
Jonathan Brush, 58, has been in Shelby County custody since an April 2022 traffic dispute resulted in Moyt's death and his arrest. According to initial police reports, Brush called 911 and told an operator Moyt ran him off the road in his Toyota Camry.
Brush then said Moyt left his car while threatening to kill him.
But in the Thursday bond hearing, a Shelby County prosecutor disputed Brush's initial comments to the 911 operator, citing unspecified footage that apparently shows Brush as the sole aggressor who stabbed Moyt 16 times before Moyt collapsed in the driver's seat of his car.
Moyt was the executive chef for LaFayette's Music Room at the time of his death and a father to a daughter, who was 6-years-old at the time of his death.
Brush, who is represented by the high-profile firm Ballin, Ballin & Fisherman, looked on during the bond and said little.
The prosecution maintained that Brush's bond amount was fitting; in 2003, Brush was released from the Florida Department of Corrections after serving 10 years and 5 months on a 20 year sentence for murder.
In 1991, Brush killed a Walton County, Florida man by throwing him off a 11th-story balcony during a heated argument.
Witnesses told police McClendon and Brush were in a heated argument inside a condo Brush owned. As the fight intensified, the two men moved outside to the balcony and McClendon was killed.
Following his release, Brush returned to the Memphis area and mostly avoided any legal troubles save for a handful of speeding tickets that would land him in defensive driving school on four separate occasions.
Brush's attorney, Blake Ballin, characterized Brush's bond as inappropriate for a person with alleged strong community ties and elderly family members that Brush cares for.
Ballin also pointed to the bond amount for Cleotha Henderson, the man who allegedly abducted and killed Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher in September 2022. Henderson, Ballin said, was being held on a bond amount lower than $500,000 and also had a criminal history.
Following Craft's decision, Moyt's loved ones filled out into the hallway, exchanging hugs and speaking through tears.
Micaela Watts is a reporter for The Commercial Appeal and can be reached at micaela.watts@commercialappeal.com.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Jonathan Brush bond upheld for accused killer of LaFayette's chef Moyt
