Rev. Al Sharpton has been scheduled to deliver the eulogy at the funeral of Corey Jones, the Florida church drummer shot dead by a police officer while waiting by his disabled car.
USA Today reports:
Sharpton, founder and president of the National Action Network, has delivered eulogies at the funerals of several people whose deaths caught the nation’s attention. Sharon Walker from the Carriers of the Glory International Ministries in Tallahassee, Fla. will also deliver a eulogy.
Corey Jones, 31, died around 3:15 a.m. on Oct. 18 while waiting for a tow truck. The Palm Beach Gardens Police Department says officer Nouman Raja got out of his car to investigate what he thought was an abandoned vehicle and was suddenly confronted by “an armed subject” who the officer then shot dead. Authorities say a gun was found on the scene.
At Payne Chapel AME in West Palm Beach, Fla., a wake for Jones will be held Friday, followed by a funeral on Saturday. The church plans to livestream the services on their website. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting contributions to the Corey Jones Memorial Fund through a GoFundMe account.
Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jones’ family, says that based on information he received from the state attorney, Jones was shot three times and never fired his weapon. Jones’ father, stepmother, older brother and younger sister told USA TODAY Jones was a jokester who fell in love with drumming as a 3-year-old and later bought a gun for protection.
Jones was licensed to carry a weapon and bought his first gun about a year and a half ago to protect himself because he often played late-night gigs and carried a lot of expensive equipment, said his sister Melissa Jones, 29. That first gun was later stolen so Jones bought another gun by making monthly payments, finally picking it up three days before his death, she said.
Raja, 38, was not wearing a body camera, and none of the department’s squad cars are fitted with dashboard cameras. He has been placed on paid administrative leave.
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(Photo Source: AP)
