Crime

Church Drummer, Corey Jones, Killed by Plainclothes Florida Police Officer

Published

9 years ago

November 4, 2015

By Carlos Harrison and Wesley Lowery, The Washington Post

Stranded on a highway off-ramp at 3 a.m., waiting for a tow truck, Corey Jones was armed with a brand-new pistol and a state-issued concealed-carry permit that entitled him to take the gun wherever he pleased.

Enter Palm Beach Gardens police officer Nouman Raja, wearing civilian clothes and driving an unmarked van. He pulled up to Jones’s vehicle, thinking it was abandoned.

Minutes later, Jones, 31, was dead.

Police say Raja opened fire after Jones confronted him with a gun. But under Florida’s expansive gun laws, Jones may have been entirely within his rights to brandish his weapon, legal experts say — especially if reports that Raja never displayed his badge are true.

The shooting has raised troubling questions about the rules of engagement when a legally armed motorist faces a police officer out of uniform late at night on a lonely road. And those rules could get even trickier, experts say, if Florida lawmakers approve a pending measure to permit people with concealed-carry permits to openly display their weapons.

“The police are nervous as it is,” said Roy Black, a prominent Florida attorney who has represented more than 100 police officers in use-of-force cases.

“The horror” of the Jones shooting, Black said, is that “both men could have been acting perfectly legally and it still ended up in tragedy.”

State officials are investigating the Oct. 18 shooting, as is the Palm Beach County sheriff. Few details have been released, and Jones’s family is demanding answers. They have hired a stable of attorneys, including Benjamin Crump, the Florida lawyer who represents the family of slain Ferguson, Mo., teen Michael Brown and slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin.

Last week, Jones’s family held a news conference on the steps of the Palm Beach County Courthouse. “I raised my children to be respectable and to respect the law. I always tell them to stay humble,” his father, Clinton Jones Sr., tearfully told reporters. “Today, I need some answers. I need to know why. Why my son is gone today.”

Though Corey Jones was black and the officer who shot him was not, his brother, Clinton Jones Jr., urged reporters not to view the shooting as “a black thing.”

“My brother did not see color. I don’t see color,” he said, noting that his wife is white. “So, no disrespect to Black Lives Matter: All lives matter.”

Jones, who had no criminal record, came from a large family in the Palm Beach area. Several of his relatives are members of the clergy. Corey worked as an assistant manager at the Delray Beach Housing Authority, relatives said, but his passion was drumming. He played at his church in Boynton Beach and with a local reggae band known as the Future Prezidents.

Playing with the band, Crump said, meant Jones often drove around with cash and “thousands of dollars worth of equipment.” More than two years ago, he began carrying a gun for protection.

Crump said that Jones had obtained a concealed-weapons permit and that he bought a new pistol.

Jones was headed home from a gig, driving south on Interstate 95, when his car broke down in Palm Beach Gardens.

About 1:45 a.m., Jones pulled off the highway and called the band’s bassist, Mathew Huntsberger, asking him to bring oil. When that didn’t help, the two men pushed the SUV to the side of the road, and Jones called for a tow truck. Huntsberger drove home, knowing the tow truck was on its way.

About 3:15 a.m., police said, Raja stopped his unmarked van near Jones’s SUV “to investigate what he believed to be an abandoned vehicle.” Raja then was “suddenly confronted by an armed subject” and opened fire, police said.

Police found Jones’s gun lying on the ground, unfired.

Crump said the family was also told that Raja never showed his badge.

“We believe Corey went to his grave not knowing if this was a real cop,” Crump said. “Why didn’t he identify himself? Why didn’t he show the badge? He rode up on him in an unmarked white van with tinted windows. He doesn’t know if he’s about to be mugged, if he’s about to be robbed, if he’s about to be killed.”

The FBI has joined the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office investigation into the shooting death of Jones.

At a rally held by Rivera Beach Mayor and Bishop Thomas Masters on Monday, the mayor announced that he, several elected officials and members of the African American community are also calling for a special prosecutor to investigate Jones’s death.

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Justice for Henry Texada

Henry Texada was known as a leader, a role model, godfather, and a friend to all. He enjoyed mentoring younger members of his family and participants at the Boys and Girls Club. He was always giving and present in the lives of others with a kind word or suggestion. Henry used the skills gained at Youth Radio as a digital media photographer to inspire others. He wanted to learn as much as he could to be a supportive person for youth, so he enrolled at Laney College for the fall of 2020 for classes in Early Childhood Development. He was killed when several people exited a 2020 silver Nissan Armada and shot him around 2 p.m. on April 28, 2020, on 68th Avenue in East Oakland.

Published

4 days ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Henry Texada was 23 when he was slain in 2020. Courtesy photo.

Family Seeks Justice for Murdered Son on Fourth Anniversary of His Death

Special to The Post

Henry used the skills gained at Youth Radio as a digital media photographer to inspire others. He wanted to learn as much as he could to be a supportive person for youth, so he enrolled at Laney College for the fall of 2020 for classes in Early Childhood Development.

He was killed when several people exited a 2020 silver Nissan Armada and shot him around 2 p.m. on April 28, 2020, on 68^th Avenue in East Oakland. Police were able to recover the vehicle, which had been rented in Reno, Nev., but have been unable to solve the case.

Henry’s senseless murder continues to deeply impact his loved ones who are suffering from his loss.

“I hate the phrase passed away or died,” his mother says. “My son, Henry, was very protective of me, and we had a bond that could not be broken. I miss him so much.

“I hate April 28th because I feel Henry should be here, because he had a purpose helping others and working with youth. He was physically strong and had a plan, goals, and dreams. Henry had a smile that would light up the room. He is a wonderful son, brother, and uncle.”

“Instead of imploring you for information and help, I should be telling you about all the things he has achieved and all the people that he touched,” his mother said. “But instead, here I am praying for justice because a person who would take the shirt off his back for others was murdered.

“There is no word to describe this everyday pain for me. I expect him to text me at any moment because his favorite saying was “don’t say bye, say see you later.” It’s four years later and I can’t physically hold him,” his mother comcluded.

The Family Support Advocates join with Henry Texada’s grieving family and loved ones in their pursuit of justice. Anyone in the community with information about Henry’s murder is asked to contact the Homicide Section of the Oakland Police Department at (510) 238-3821 or the TIP LINE at (510) 238-7950. CrimeStoppers of Oakland is offering a reward for an arrest in this case. #JusticeforHenry.

FAMILY SUPPORT ADVOCACY TASK FORCE

The mission of the Family Support Advocacy Task Force, a committee of the Violence Prevention Coalition, is to advocate for local, state and federal policies and legislation to enhance and expand support to families and friends of those who experienced violence; for more compassionate and transparent communication between law enforcement, the district attorney with the family of homicide victims and to push for the elimination of all violence, but particularly gun violence and homicides.

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Activism

Calif. Anti-Sex Trafficking Advocates Discuss Competing Bills, Strategies

Advocates from across California are challenging state officials and community leaders to support legislation that provides resources and services for survivors and victims of human trafficking, as well as assistance as they transition back into civil society.  Some of those advocates are also calling for more effective state policy to curtail trafficking, a crime that has an outsized impact on Black children, particularly girls.

Published

5 days ago

May 3, 2024

Oakland Post

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Some of those advocates are also calling for more effective state policy to curtail trafficking, a crime that has an outsized impact on Black children, particularly girls.

According to the FBI, a report covering a two-year period found Black children accounted for 57% of all juvenile arrests for prostitution. In addition, 40% of sex trafficking victims were Black and 60% of those victims had been enrolled in the foster care system.

“It is time to hold the perpetrators who take advantage of our children accountable,” said the Rev. Shane Harris, a San Diego-based activist, former foster youth and founder of the Peoples Association of Justice Advocates, (PAJA), a national civil rights organization and policy think tank.

“It is time to send a thorough message that if you seek to buy a child for sex, you will pay the highest criminal penalties in this state,” added Harris who was speaking at a rally at the State Capitol earlier this month. Harris was speaking in support of Senate Bill 1414, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove (D-Bakersfield), which calls for people who buy sex from minors to be punished with a felony. The punishment includes a two-year prison sentence and a $25,000 fine.

Harris said the PAJA is the only civil rights organization in the state that supports SB 1414.

Harris urged other Black-led groups who favor anti-trafficking legislation more focused on criminal justice reforms (as opposed to stiffer penalties), to “join the movement.”

Many of those civil rights groups fear that SB 1414 could lead to the incarceration of more Black youth.

Those sentiments were echoed in a panel discussion organized by Black women advocates on April 26 to examine the cause and effects of human trafficking in California’s Black communities. The virtual event was hosted by the Forgotten Children, Inc, a faith-based nonprofit that advocates for survivors and victims of human trafficking through anti-trafficking campaigns and initiatives.

Panelists shared the psychological impact of sexual exploitation on youth and children in the long term.

Author and educator Dr. Stephany Powell shared statistics and information revealing that African American women and girls are the most trafficked nationwide.

Powell, who serves as the senior advisor on law enforcement and policy at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation said that national data indicates that sex trade survivors are disproportionately women of color. She stated that male survivors often go unnoticed because boys rarely report trafficked crimes.

Powell said that decriminalizing prostitution in California could increase human trafficking. She argued that Senate Bill 357, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), which was signed into law in 2022 and legalized loitering for prostitution, caused a surge in street-level prostitution.

Panelist and psychologist Dr. Gloria Morrow shared opposing views on decriminalizing prostitution. She said that decriminalizing prostitution could help survivors gain access to state resources and support.

Despite opposing views, Powell and Morrow agree that the Black community needs resources and educational programs to address human trafficking.