Biography
Jones was active in the late-1960s/early-1970s Black Power milieu as a former Black Panther and later became known in California as a community figure while also being drawn into a long-running, decades-old homicide investigation.
In 2007 he was arrested at his home in Altadena as part of the “San Francisco 8” case, accused alongside other former Panthers in the 1971 killing of a San Francisco Police Department sergeant. An earlier prosecution in the 1970s had been derailed after a judge ruled key evidence was obtained through torture; after extensive pretrial litigation and a narrowing of the case, charges against Jones were ultimately dismissed in 2009.
