Suspect accused of arson and shooting at Planned Parenthood has died, TN officials say

A man with a history of violent crime who was named as a suspect in the intentional burning of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Tennessee – as well as shooting at the clinic in a separate incident – has died, officials said this week.

Mark Thomas Reno, aged 64, reportedly passed away on August 15 after being transported from a detention facility where had been in custody since July. Authorities have not released a cause of death, but jail records show Reno suffered a “medical episode” in jail before being released to the hospital. 

Reno is named in the newly unsealed court documents that reveal he is suspected of burning the Planned Parenthood clinic, firing at its doors, and shooting at a federal building, all in separate incidents.

“The government’s investigation has revealed that (Reno) engaged in a series of violent acts of property destruction in Knoxville since early 2021,” the complaint reads.

Ashley Coffield, President of Planned Parenthood in Tennessee and North Mississippi, released a statement this week regarding Reno’s violent acts at the Knoxville clinic.

“The man who was arrested in this case is not the only one who holds responsibility,” she said. “When politicians use hateful rhetoric against abortion providers and support extreme laws, like the total abortion ban we have in Tennessee, it shouldn’t surprise us that some people believe real-world violence is justified.”

Reno set fire to the clinic in December, 2021. Surveillance footage linked Reno to a vehicle at the scene. The clinic was unoccupied at the time and there were no injuries. Reno had previously threatened to harm the building over what he said were his and an extremist group’s beliefs about abortion. 

“Reno made several statements about the destruction of the Center and a plan to burn the Center when reconstruction begins,” court records say.

Coffield encouraged voters to make their voices heard in the midterm election if they want to protect abortion rights in Tennessee after a trigger law went into effect earlier this year.

“If this feels like a failure of leadership, we can send a message at the ballot box on Nov. 8,” she said.