Pearson To Return To Tennessee House

April 12, 2023 4:14 am

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The second of two Black Democrats expelled from the Republican-led Tennessee House will follow his colleague in a return to the Legislature. Justin Pearson will be sworn in and back at work Thursday at the Capitol. The Memphis lawmaker is coming back a week after he and Rep. Justin Jones of Nashville were banished for a gun control protest on the House floor that propelled them into the national spotlight. The protest followed a Nashville school shooting that killed three children and three adults. On Monday, the Nashville Metropolitan Council restored Jones to office. He was reinstated to his House seat the same day. The positions are interim. Both plan to run in special elections for their seats.