Republicans in the Tennessee Senate on Thursday voted to confirm Governor Bill Lee‘s nominee to the State Board of Education, despite being involved in a lawsuit related to his online ammunition business allegedly selling ammunition to a 17-year old who shot and killed ten people and wounding another 13 at a Santa Fe, Texas high school in 2018.
“It’s against the law for someone under 18 years old to purchase gun ammunition,” The Tennessean reports.
Jordan Mollenhour (photo, left) of Knoxville founded and owns Lucky Gunner, which “has faced multiple lawsuits over the years. The company has been linked to the selling of ammunition involved in two mass shootings.”
The company was also sued for selling over 4,000 rounds of ammo to the man who fatally shot 12 people at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, in 2012. A federal judge dismissed the Colorado lawsuit in 2015.
Jeff Yarbro, the Democratic Minority Leader of the Tennessee Senate blasted the GOP lawmakers.
“There are nearly 7 million people in Tennessee surely to God the governor could have found one state board of education nominee who’s not in ongoing litigation about illegally selling ammunition used in a deadly school shooting.”
Mollenhour, who currently represents one district on the Education Board, sailed through his confirmation hearing: 26 of 27 Republicans voted to confirm. One abstained. All six Democrats voted against.
The Tennessee House also has to confirm Mollenhour. The vote is scheduled for March 14.