Community Policing, Lessons Learned From Ferguson

Floor Speech

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Thank you very much, Representative Horsford. I am honored to be with you tonight. Nevada's Fourth District is most capably and competently represented by your presence in Congress. I am also grateful to Mr. Jeffries, who represents New York's Eighth District. The two of you have done a stellar job in hosting these Special Order hours.

I am grateful to the President of the United States of America, the Honorable Barack Obama, for appointing the Honorable Eric Holder as Attorney General. I am grateful because Mr. Holder is intelligent.

He has the intellect necessary to comprehend the breadth of these issues. I am also grateful in that he is a person of courage. I am grateful because intellect without courage can be intellect wasted. His intellect is not wasted. He has had the courage to take on the challenges such as what we have with Ferguson.

The Justice Department is there. They are investigating. There is good reason for the Justice Department to be in Ferguson. The Justice Department is in Ferguson because Ferguson is 67 percent Black, and only one African American is on the city council of seven, if you count the mayor--67 percent Black.

The police department is 83 percent White. Three Blacks out of 53 officers--good reason to be in Ferguson; school board, one member Black of seven. Of the officers that are on the police department or were on the police department, one of them is on the city council--good reason to be in Ferguson.

Five officers or former officers, either they are on the department now or not, have been alleged to be involved with some sort of civil rights violation, accused--allegation--of choking and hog-tieing a young person--another circumstance wherein a person was tased and died afterwards; another circumstance wherein a person was beaten by a peace officer and then charged with destroying public property when he bled on the officer's clothing--good reason to be in Ferguson.

A prosecutor who has decided that he will not recuse himself, notwithstanding his father's tragic circumstance--the father died at the hands of a person who happened to have been African American, who was a peace officer by the way, his father was--refuses to recuse himself, and he refuses to have a preliminary hearing with this case.

This case does not have to go to a grand jury. This case could be heard by way of a preliminary hearing after an arrest warrant has been issued.

I submit to you that there is sufficient probable cause to indict this officer or to arrest this officer, more appropriately. In any jurisdiction in the United States of America, there is probable cause to arrest.

Then you would go to a preliminary hearing, and you would have transparency. The world would hear what the witnesses have to say. There is good reason for the Justice Department to be in Ferguson.

So I am honored to be here tonight to stand with my colleagues, especially the Honorable LACY CLAY, who has been a real champion on behalf of this family. I am honored to be here because I understand that injustice

anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, and injustice in Ferguson unchecked can lead to injustice in Houston.

I think that the President of the United States of America made a wise choice when he chose the Honorable Eric Holder. I pray that the natural order of things will not continue to be circumvented. Mothers and fathers should not--n-o-t--should not bury their children. We must circumvent this kind of behavior. Thank God for you, Mr. President.

I thank you, sir, for yielding me the time.

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