The Barracks Road intersection with Emmett Street is becoming more dangerous by the day.
Principally, lives (and cars) are threatened by a roving street beggar, Michael Anthony Jones, with whom local law enforcement is well acquainted. To the concerned public, he’s known as “Clappy” or alternatively, “the Barracks Road Barker.” But, whatever the moniker, he’s a menace.
As previously reported by The Schilling Show, Jones has been harassing cars and violating traffic safety laws for years. In July of 2021, he was arrested and charged with malicious wounding, yet, he was back on the streets shortly thereafter.
Most recently, “Clappy” has stepped-up his parlous intimidation game by venturing into moving traffic while soliciting. This is not isolated behavior and it often is accompanied by threatening gestures or verbiage and random striking of vehicles.
The Charlottesville Police Department (CPD) has fielded numerous complaints about the perilous conditions at Barracks Road, yet it refuses to act. The motoring and pedestrian public is imperiled by the CPD’s politically motivated dormancy, yet the peril continues unabated.
Should a related accident occur at this intersection, the guilty parties (CPD, City Manager, City Council) will be held accountable by virtue of this and previous exposés of the ongoing preventable hazard.
In addition to the seemingly inevitable carnage awaiting at Barracks Road, the potential financial liability of City taxpayers—due the officials’ deliberate inaction—is enormous.
I am sure the city doesn’t want to be sued for denying this guy his first amendment rights, so if he gets injured the motorists insurance will have to pay. They want to appease the activists in town, taxpayers be damned.
(Rose Coleman) Yeah the idiot can yell his stupid stuff but he is NOT allowed to put his hands on our property or US! If there is an accident and it’s caused by him and this man has been allowed to continued to stand out in the same area and put our lives at stake all bets are OFF!! The city, CPD and whoever would not be taking his rights away by telling him that he has to take a stand against whatever it is he’s doing somewhere else! There are places all over he can take it! Not in the middle of traffic!
Alleghany County, Va to the northwest of Charlottesville adopted ordinance making begging a criminal offense after similar experience. Your board needs to adopt, before someone is hurt. Petition drive if they won’t act
He is a violent felon that terrorizes asians on the downtown mall. He is the “clapping man” that screams at people and is aggressive towards diners all the time on the downtown mall. Just another one of our charming protected class that has been allowed to ruin this poor town. You can recognize him by his dreadlocks and Jamaican hat. Keep your distance, he knows there are no repercussions for attacking people.