Hundreds gathered this past weekend at the Payne Chapel AME in West Palm Beach to give final respects to musician Corey Jones, the victim of the recent police shooting in Palm Beach Gardens. Special guest Rev. Al Sharpton spoke out against the nation-wide series of police violence against black men.
Palm Beach Gardens Police Officer Nouman Raja killed Jones in the predawn hours of Oct. 18. The plainclothes policeman approached Jones on the side of a highway, where Jones was waiting for a tow truck to pick up his broken down car.
Raja, who was in an unmarked vehicle and, according to officials, not wearing a badge, told investigators he shot Jones after a confrontation near Jones’ vehicle. Jones, 31, was armed. He had a concealed-carry permit and had legally bought his gun three days before the shooting. But prosecutors said Jones did not fire is weapon. And his family believes Raja never identified himself as a police officer.
