Alleged member of Jacksonville throat-slashing trio pleads not guilty

Handcuffed and surrounded by security, the man accused of throat-slashing a  Jacksonville veteran entered a courtroom Thursday for the first time.

Ray Jones told the judge he isn’t guilty.

Officers say Jones, Jennifer Schulte and Douglas Cercy lured Melvin Clark to the Westside, where they robbed him at gunpoint, slashed his throat and then drove away in his car.

The 86-year-old veteran spent weeks in the hospital recovering after police found him, left for dead, on a dirt road in Duval County.

In April, the group was arrested in Boca Raton, 50 miles from where Clark’s car was dumped.

All three are charged with attempted murder, robbery and kidnapping.

On April 20th, a judge waived court appearances for the trio.

Schulte and Cercy will go before a judge on June 7.

Jones will be back in court on June 15.

Cox Media Group