TN House staffer suspended after verbal confrontation with Rep. Justin Jones

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A rift between House Democratic Caucus members grew after Rep. Torrey Harris (D-Memphis) claimed Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) tried to charge visitors for pictures at the end of January.

“There were some students who came to advocate for funding for their school, and they were really wanting to take a photo with Representative Jones,” Harris said. “He was going to charge them $20 to take the photo.”

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Jones emphatically denies that he asked for money in exchange for a picture.

“That’s untrue,” Jones said. “That’s not true, and I hope you report it as fact, and you talk to (Sen.) Sara Kyle, who was there.”

So, News 2 did.

“Heading back in, we jokingly said, ‘No, no, $20 a picture,’ kiddingly,” Kyle (D-Memphis) said. “Walked back in my office and had a more, what I thought was, jovial conversation.”

From there, Kyle said anything that happened outside of her office she did not find out about until later in the week.

Harris said one of his staffers confronted Jones with the allegation of charging for pictures, the two argued, and the staffer was suspended.

“I was in the hallway, and a staff member yelled at me,” Jones said. “That is unacceptable in this building, for anyone to yell at anyone.”

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In a memo to the staffer on leave, Director of Legislative Administration Connie Ridley wrote, “Your conduct failed to maintain a satisfactory and harmonious relationship with the member and has caused disruption in daily operations for the member and other individuals who were impacted by your actions.”

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News 2 obtained the above memo and decided to keep the staffer’s name and address off of it.

Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) was asked about the incident. He wouldn’t say exactly what was said but alluded that it couldn’t be repeated.

“You just cannot say that to a member,” Sexton said. “So, that’s what we had discussions about.”

In a tweet last week, Harris alluded to someone in the building as his “most ineffective colleague.”

“My only ask is that moving forward for anybody, no matter what the legislator may be wanting to do or accomplish, that we try our best to leave our staff out of it,” Harris said.

As the interview with Jones continued Tuesday, he decided to instead bring reporters around the Cordell Hull State Office Building to ask other lawmakers–including Harris and Kyle–about the incident.

Harris was not available. His office said the lawmaker was having a minor medical procedure in Memphis and would be out through at least Thursday.

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Jones also led reporters to House Minority Leader Karen Camper’s (D-Memphis) office. She declined comment, saying it was a personnel issue.

The staffer’s suspension lasts through Feb. 16 without pay and through May 3 with pay. She will also have to attend counseling classes as a condition for her return.

Jones also admonished News 2 and Tennessee Journal reporter Andy Sher for their work during an interview to learn more about the situation.

“The thing is, Andy and Chris, you often become glorified tabloid writers,” Jones said. “You’re like tabloid writers who want to write stories based off of fiction or based off of rumor.”

News 2 reached out to the staffer for comment, but they declined.

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