People v. Jones CA4/3

FACTS

On June 6, 2018, the postal service delivered a “suspicious” package to the Central Justice Center. Jones had mailed the package. After the bomb squad X-rayed the package for safety, a court bailiff with the sheriff’s department opened it and discovered approximately 100 pages of documents that looked like legal paperwork. Among the documents were several copies of Jones’s birth certificate and a citation with Jones’s name, address, and date of birth. The contents of the package were subsequently examined by Orange County Sheriff Deputies in the judicial protection unit (JPU), a unit

2 that investigates threats or unusual occurrences involving judicial officers and court employees. The documents were printed on blue paper and contained red thumbprints as a form of a signature, both of which are indicative of “sovereign citizen” ideology. Individuals who identify as “sovereign citizens” do not accept the authority of the government and believe the laws do not apply to them. Sovereign citizens are classified as “extremists” by law enforcement and have committed violent acts against government officials. For this reason, sovereign citizens give JPU deputies cause for concern.…