BSO Pledges More Body Cams On Cops At Corey Jones Panel Discussion
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LAUDERDALE LAKES (CBSMiami) -- Three weeks after a fatal police-involved shooting in Palm Beach Gardens that drew national attention, the family of the beloved church drummer who was gunned down attended a community forum in Broward County.
Corey Jones' family was among the dozens of people who were on hand for a prayer vigil and discussion on community policing at an event held at a Lauderdale Lakes church.
"We need to have justice," said Clinton Jones, Corey Jones' father. "We need some answers and we need them right now."
"We just want justice for Corey and for anybody who's going through this situation right now because we're not the only ones," said C.J. Jones, Corey Jones' brother.
Jones, a beloved and well-known church drummer in his community, was waiting for a tow truck after his vehicle had broken down on an I-95 ramp. Palm Beach Gardens Officer Noumann Raja approached Jones' vehicle in an unmarked car. According to Palm Beach Gardens police, Jones confronted Officer Raja. The officer then fired his weapon killing Jones.
Sunday night's forum, organized by the H.T. Smith Black Law Students Association at FIU, drew a number of community leaders, including Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel. Sheriff Israel made a pledge to the family of equipping all BSO deputies with body cameras, in an effort to get an accurate account of police-involved incidents.
"We're about to start phase one of our program and we're going to, I think in the next 30 days, we'll have 25 deputies in different cities wearing the body cameras and our hope is, you know, within the next year or so that everybody is outfitted with them," said Sheriff Israel.
Earlier in the day, a small protest drew demonstrators to the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department. The family is grateful for the community's support. Support they said they would not have had, had it not been for the type of person Corey Jones was and the type of life he led.
"It touches my heart just to know that so much love is out there for us as a family and keeping the beat alive for our son Corey Jones," said Clinton Jones.
Event organizers hope to hold other forums like this in the future and that other places throughout the country do the same.
