Paul Jones Jr.’s support for Donald Trump nearly turned fatal when he was shot after an argument over his candidate.
Jones, a black Vietnam vet, was at his local bar in Cleveland, Ohio, in late July having a happy hour conversation about the upcoming presidential election when he says another man “butted in” the discussion Jones was having with a friend.
The eavesdropper either didn’t like his views, or didn’t like Trump.
Or both.
“The conversation wasn’t directed at him or to him,” Jones, a “staunch” Trump supporter, told WCPO from his hospital bed.
During the conversation, Jones says the man walked outside to his car, and returned with a gun.
Jones says the man shot him in the leg, effectively ending the debate.
Then the man walked out.
Darnell Hall is now charged with shooting Jones.
Defense attorney Harvey Bruner disputes Jones’s account of events and instead, claims “Hall had a gun with him the entire time and pulled out his gun during the argument over Trump,” the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Bruner claims the bar owner attempted to grab Hall’s gun, causing it to fire.
“Donald Trump has brought a lot of things to people,” Jones’s mother, Lacosta, tells the news station. “Opened their eyes and say who they wanted to vote for.”
“People today that don’t think like they do are ready to cause problems,” Lacosta Jones says.
“I’m quite sure you have a lot of people having their own opinions. But that doesn’t mean you should hurt somebody because you have your own opinion.”
Hall has been charged with felonious assault.
Jones is expected to recover.
Hall pleaded guilty in 2015 to a misdemeanor assault charge when he got into a fight with two women in the same bar, striking one with a bottle.
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