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Florida officials fire officer who fatally shot armed man waiting for tow truck Florida officials fire officer who fatally shot armed man waiting for tow truck
(about 2 hours later)
Palm Beach Gardens officials say they have fired a police officer who fatally shot an armed man who was waiting next to his disabled SUV last month. A Florida city has fired a police officer who fatally shot an armed man who was waiting next to his disabled car last month, officials said on Thursday.
The 18 October shooting death of Corey Jones is the latest to become part of a national debate over police treatment of African Americans.
Related: Corey Jones shooting: officer involved had previous suspension threatRelated: Corey Jones shooting: officer involved had previous suspension threat
City spokeswoman Candice Temple said in a press release on Thursday that the police department has terminated the employment of Officer Nouman Raja. The officer was hired in April and the city said he was still on probation. Palm Beach Gardens spokeswoman Candice Temple said in a news release that the police department terminated the employment of officer Nouman Raja on Wednesday. The independent criminal investigation is ongoing, Temple said. The officer was hired in April, and the city said he was still on probation.
Authorities have said Raja was on duty but not in uniform and driving an unmarked van when he approached Corey Jones in the early morning hours of 18 October. Jones was waiting for a tow truck off Interstate 95. Raja was on duty but not in uniform and driving an unmarked van when he approached Corey Jones in the early morning hours of 18 October, authorities said. Jones was a musician who performed with local bands and had just left a gig when his vehicle broke down. A fellow band member tried unsuccessfully to jumpstart the SUV, then left Jones to await a tow truck.
Officials say Raja fired six shots at Jones, hitting him three times. Police later recovered a .380-caliber gun handgun, which Jones had bought a week earlier. Raja fired six shots at Jones, hitting him three times, officials said. Police later recovered a .380-caliber gun handgun, which Jones had bought a week earlier.
John Kazanjian, the president of the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association (PBA), said he is disappointed that city officials fired Raja before getting all the facts. The union president said officials would not have been able to fire a veteran officer without a complete investigation, but with Raja only on the job for about six months, his superiors only had to say that he failed to make probation.
“The chief probably had some outside pressure to fire Officer Raja,” Kazanjian said.
Kazanjian said the PBA will continue representing Raja.
“We’re looking at all possible avenues into getting Officer Raja his job back,” Kazanjian said.
Jones’s family and civil rights activists have been demanding answers from police.Jones’s family and civil rights activists have been demanding answers from police.
Attorneys representing the family released a statement on their behalf on Thursday, saying they were pleased with Raja’s firing but also want him to be held criminally liable for the shooting.
“Our family remains hopeful that the outside agencies brought in to investigate Corey’s killing will soon begin to yield factual information about how and why this officer acted so callously,” the family’s statement said.
Since the shooting, Jones’s family and lawyers insisted he would not have had his gun out as Raja approached had he known he was an officer.