Blake Moore: “I would like to associate myself with the comments and remarks of the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Kelly) with regard…”

“I would like to associate myself with the comments and remarks of the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Kelly) with regard to being mindful of the deaths from gun violence that plague our communities all across the country, and particularly as the summer has begun, these deaths will continue. Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak today about another kind of gun violence that makes our streets and homes unsafe, and that is the deadly encounters between civilians and police officers. Mr. Speaker, I have wracked my brain trying to understand these deaths. I have grieved with the mothers who have lost their children. I have met with experts and attended roundtables on how to find a way to mitigate these fatal police encounters. Let me tell you, I think I can propose a solution that we can all support, and that is H.R. 3060, the Preventing Tragedies Between Police and Communities Act, which would link law enforcement training on deescalation techniques to receipt of Federal Byrne JAG funds. Now, Mr. Speaker, I certainly wish that I could take full credit for this concept because I think that this legislation would both save civilian lives and police lives; however, this idea is rooted in the Police Executive Research Forum report which both Republicans and Democrats have cited. It was written by police officer peers and by police officer experts. Mr.…”