INTRODUCTION OF THE COREY JONES ACT

Congressman Alcee Hastings
Congressional Record: 116th Congress
Extension of Remarks
14 March 2019

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 14, 2019

  Mr. HASTINGS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Corey 
Jones Act, which is named after a young man who was taken from us far 
too soon under circumstances far too tragic and preventable to be 
allowed to happen again.
  During the early hours of October 18, 2015, Corey Jones of Lake 
Worth, Florida, was shot and killed by Nouman Raja, a plainclothes 
police officer operating an unmarked vehicle. Corey was legally and 
peacefully pulled to the side of the road awaiting roadside assistance 
when he was approached by Mr. Raja. Corey had no reason to believe that 
the person in plainclothes and driving an unmarked vehicle was a law 
enforcement officer. This uncertainty and confusion ultimately led to a 
tragedy that could have been easily avoided.
  After Corey's tragic death, I met with members of his family as well 
as officials from Palm Beach County. We discussed the urgency of 
addressing the issue of plainclothes officers in unmarked vehicles 
engaging in routine traffic stops. I promised that I would work to 
promote safer policing practices in our communities and the Corey Jones 
Act helps to accomplish this goal.
  Madam Speaker, Nouman Raja, the officer involved in the tragic 
shooting death of Corey Jones, was recently found guilty of 
manslaughter and attempted murder. In an effort to ensure that this 
tragedy does not happen to other families, I respectfully ask my 
colleagues to lend their support to this important bill.