orig. James Warren Jones
born May 13, 1931, near Lynn, Ind., U.S.
died Nov. 18, 1978, Jonestown, Guyana
U.S. leader of a New Religous Movement .
He became a preacher in Indianapolis. He established the People's Temple, which was affiliated with the Disciples of Christ and opposed racism and poverty. The group moved to San Francisco in 1971. Accused of defrauding church members, Jones led his group to Guyana in 1977 and set up the agricultural commune of Jonestown, using threats and force to control his followers. In 1978 U.S. Congressman Leo Ryan went to Jonestown to investigate allegations against Jones. Ryan and four others were killed when they reached the airport to return to the U.S. In the aftermath, most of the Jonestown residents, in a mass rite of murder-suicide, were shot or poisoned; Jones died of a gunshot wound. The death toll was 913, including many children.