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Two weeks after traveling to the U.S. Capitol to participate in the Jan. 6 riots, a Tennessee man opened fire on the doors of a Planned Parenthood clinic under construction in Knoxville. Within a year, he burned down the clinic.
Federal court documents were unsealed Monday identifying Mark Thomas Reno, who authorities say was responsible for targeting the Knoxville health center.
John J. in downtown Knoxville on July 3. Reno was indicted earlier this year for allegedly firing shots at the Duncan federal office building. His connection to the violence against the reproductive health clinic was not made public at the time.
When politicians use hateful rhetoric against abortion providers and support extreme laws like Tennessee’s total abortion ban, it shouldn’t surprise us that some believe real-world violence is justified. A fire needs fuel, and politicians are eager to provide it.
– Ashley Caufield, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi
Rino died Aug. 15 after suffering a “medical episode” at the jail, court records show. He was 63 years old.
Ashley Caufield, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi, on Monday thanked federal law enforcement agencies and the Knoxville Fire Department for their work investigating the incidents.
Caufield drew a line from violent rhetoric by elected leaders to acts of violence targeting, in this case, a clinic that provides abortion and reproductive health care.
“In this case, the person who was arrested is not the only person who bears responsibility,” Cofield said. “When politicians use hateful rhetoric against abortion providers and support draconian laws like the total abortion ban we have in Tennessee, it shouldn’t surprise us that some believe real-world violence is justified. A fire needs fuel, and politicians are eager to provide it.
Neither staff nor patients were present at the clinic when the attack took place. On January 22, 2021, Roy v. The shooting, which coincided with Wade’s 48th birthday, happened just before 6 a.m. before the clinic opened, according to court filings. Rino fired from the driver’s seat of his car into the front entrance, shattering a glass door.
Federal authorities said the Reno clinic was set on fire on Dec. 31 and destroyed. The clinic was under construction at the time, with no staff or patients. Crime scene analysis revealed that the fire was set with gasoline.
Surveillance footage helped authorities locate a red pickup truck headed to Reno at the scene. An FBI search of Renault’s home and two vehicles, including a red GMC Sierra, turned up a red gasoline container. In his home, authorities found two books containing instructions on how to make an IED, or improvised explosive device. A search of Reno’s cell phone turned up a recent photo of the clinic, a screenshot between “unknown individuals on a social media application discussing the arson” and an Internet search for Planned Parenthood facilities, court documents state.
A search of Reno’s phone also found a message to a person not identified in court records. The message included a link to a story about the fire and the message, “We were busy worshiping Jesus.”
Rhino returned to the clinic during a public appearance on April 26 of last year and secretly recorded a conversation with a plainclothes Knoxville police officer who did not recognize Rhino.
“Reno made several statements about the destruction of the center and plans to burn the center down while rebuilding began,” according to court documents.
During the same conversation, Reno indicated he had plans to burn down a specialty clinic, the Knoxville Center for Reproductive Health, and “discussed destroying other infrastructure targets to include federal buildings,” court documents state.
Reno opened fire on the John J. Duncan Federal Building on July 3 of this year, according to court documents. By then, law enforcement had secretly installed a tracking device in Renault’s car.
Reno was arrested on July 18. A week later a federal grand jury indicted Reno on charges of vandalism.
In a video press conference with reporters on Monday, Caufield was particularly critical of Gov. Bill Lee, who has yet to comment publicly on the violence at the Knoxville clinic last year.
“Not once has the governor condemned this violence, not against our health center or the federal building that was attacked in Knoxville,” she said. “He says he’s comfortable with the state’s abortion law knowing that pregnant women are traveling out of state for basic life-saving health care.”
“If it looks like a failure of leadership, we can send a message at the ballot box on November 8,” she said.
Unsealed Affidavit of Mark Thomas Reno by Anita Wadhwani on Scribd
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