Democrat AG candidate’s digital past is being deleted by someone in a hurry

Social media and other online profiles for Virginia’s Democrat nominee for attorney general, Jay Jones, are being scrubbed from key online platforms just weeks before election day.

The deletions come amid a handful of big troubles for the candidate, the latest of which revolves around possible exaggerations regarding his qualifications.

Taken together, the pressure is mounting for the Democrat nominee to step aside, as his ticket mates worry he will drag down liberal prospects in the Old Dominion State’s general election slated for November.

Questions about whether Jones exaggerated his biography and resume when he highlighted his “extensive trial experience” are circulating on social media.

“There is no credible, public evidence in public dockets or reported cases that Jay Jones ever tried a case in court,” noted Elizabeth MacDonald, an editor at Fox Business, citing Jones professional biography at his law firm.   

The Hogan Lovells law firm’s webpage previously dedicated to Jones, where he was listed as a senior associate, now redirects to a “404 Not Found” page.  

At the same time, a Google search shows a cached description from the seemingly deleted page that includes the words “extensive trial experience” in his bio.  

The site previously described Jones’s work defending “clients in civil and criminal investigations” before the profile disappeared.  

“Jay is an accomplished litigator with extensive trial experience in state court,” said an archive of the page. “With expansive expertise, he advises and advocates for major clients across the consumer, financial, technology, and life sciences industries.” 

The firm has issued no statement about the deletion and Jones’s campaign has not responded to The Lion’s request for comment. 

Similarly, Jones’ LinkedIn profile, which once displayed his affiliation with Hogan Lovells and his law degree from the University of Virginia, has been removed, also returning a “404” error, demonstrating the page has been deleted or hidden.   

The online scrubbing comes as scrutiny grows over Jones’s professional record and judgment.  

Those questions have surfaced alongside other controversies.  

In 2022, Jones was convicted of reckless driving for traveling 116 mph in an automobile, according to The New York Post.   

Court records cited in that report show he avoided potential jail time by completing 1,000 hours of community service, which he divided between the NAACP and his own political action committee (PAC). 

Some critics said the arrangement blurred ethical boundaries by allowing his PAC to benefit politically from a criminal sentence, calling it a “fraud upon the court.”  

In addition, leaked text messages reported by the National Review appear to show Jones talk about shooting then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert “with two bullets to the head” and reference violence against the Republican lawmaker’s family.  

The messages, allegedly sent to a GOP delegate in 2022, ignited bipartisan outrage.  

Jones later issued a public apology, saying he was “deeply, deeply sorry” for the text messages but rejected calls to withdraw from the race.  

The timing of the online deletions, coinciding with mounting attention to the scandals, has raised questions about the future of the campaign.