Former Michigan legislator Jewell Jones, who rapidly ascended to national prominence as the state’s youngest-elected representative, seems to be mounting a comeback of sorts following a series of legal setbacks.
The Inkster Chamber of Commerce elected Jones as its president, according to the one-time Inkster city councilman’s social pages.
“I’m looking forward to working alongside the great team of folk we have already while building with other leaders to bring about real change for our business community, and city at large,” Jones writes.
The Inkster Chamber of Commerce “is a voluntary partnership of business and professional people working together to build a healthy business environment and improve the quality of life in the Inkster community,” per its website. Though it works closely with Inkster’s city government, it is not a municipal entity and not subject to the same rules outlined in the city’s code of ordinances.
Nearly 100 individuals and employers, including a firm called S & JJ that lists Jones and his sister, Shaina, as owners, are listed as members of the Chamber that pay annual fees from $65-$300 subjective to size of their business. Membership benefits, according to the chamber’s site, include discounts on purchasing insurance, telecommunications equipment, marketing services, website design and more.
In 2015, Jones, then 20, became the youngest person elected to Inkster’s city council. After the death of Democratic State Representative Julie Plawecki in 2016, Jones successfully launched a campaign to fill her vacancy, becoming the youngest elected official in Michigan history to serve at the state level. He served three terms as representative of Inkster, Garden City and portions of Dearborn Heights, Westland and Livonia before being forced out due to term limits.
Jones quickly amassed thousands of followers across multiple platforms, more than double the population of Inkster, a hardscrabble suburb that struggles with crime, disinvestment, and the dissolution of its public school system in 2013.
Inkster’s population peaked at nearly 40,000 in 1970, as the city became a large settlement for Ford Motor Company’s Black employees who were legally barred from living in Dearborn where the automaker was headquarters. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population stands at nearly 26,000. And like many of the towns that Michigan Avenue runs through en route to Chicago, most business activity in Inkster is concentrated on the short stretch of the east-west road.
Positioning himself as a beacon of light for his hometown – and part of a wave of Democratic hopefuls holding office during President Trump’s first term in the White House – Jones, a 2017 Michigan Chronicle 40 Under 40 honoree, headed back and forth to Lansing with goals of delivering more resources to Inkster and the surrounding area.
During Jones’ second term, though, he found himself in legal trouble that included a 2021 arrest for drunk driving and a 2025 arrest for bringing two unloaded guns into a Saginaw hospital. He was recently sentenced to probation by a Saginaw County judge for that incident.
“The Judge gave me no more than twenty-four months [of] probation and told me don’t come back,” Jones posted in a social status with an AI-generated photo of himself “I said, YES SIR,” he continued.
Jones’ post was met with support from his online followers, with several wishing him well on his endeavors and telling him to “stay out of trouble” and “stay the course.”
“This is our opportunity to unlock the incredible potential of our businesses, our people and our City,” Jones writes. “Together, we can build an Inkster where opportunity is visible, and within reach, on every corner.”
You can reach Aaron at afoley@michronicle.com.
