Andre Carson: “I thank Representative Curbelo. I am pleased that this bill is being considered by the House this afternoon during…”

“I thank Representative Curbelo. I am pleased that this bill is being considered by the House this afternoon during National Police Week. I also appreciate Subcommittee Chairman Barletta's support of this measure and the support of the other members of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, who also agreed to be original cosponsors of this great bill, which would name the current headquarters of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or the ATF, after fallen Special Agent Ariel Rios. As was mentioned by my colleague, Agent Rios was born in 1954. He attended the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan, and he graduated with a degree in criminal justice in 1976. Agent Rios immediately started his career in criminal justice by working for the Department of Corrections in both Washington, D.C., and in New York City. Later, he joined the ATF in 1978 and developed a reputation as an effective law enforcement officer. In 1982, Agent Rios was working as a member of Vice President George H. W. Bush's anti-drug task force. It was here that he was shot and killed while working undercover to unravel a drug ring in Miami, Florida. In 1985, Congress saw fit to honor the ultimate sacrifice that Special Agent Rios made. Congress acknowledged the fact that he was the first ATF agent to die in the line of duty by naming the headquarters of the ATF building the Ariel Rios Memorial Building.…”