New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus Chair Senator Ronald L. Rice today issued the following statement demanding a transparent, expeditious and thorough investigation into the state trooper shooting death of Maurice Gordon, Jr.:

As New Jersey sits at the epicenter of a global pandemic, a far more dangerous and longstanding disease continues to plague our Black communities.

Systemic racism – with its direct and indirect manifestations – is finally forcing America to confront this uncomfortable truth that continues to undermine its greatness and corrode its soul.

While our nation mourns the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, Governor Phil Murphy remains silent about the death of Maurice Gordon, Jr., who died after being shot an alleged four times, and then handcuffed, by a New Jersey State Trooper on the Garden State Parkway on May 23^rd, two days before the murder of Mr. Floyd in Minneapolis.

Why is the New Jersey governor – who marched yesterday with the Black community in rallies in Hillside and Westfield – refusing to address the death of Mr. Gordon, who was shot and killed here in our own state?

This silence must end now.

The New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus demands that our governor ensure a transparent, fair, unbiased, expeditious and comprehensive investigation into this shooting death of an unarmed black man which has inexplicably remained under wraps since May.  We ask that the video footage of Maurice Gordon, Jr.’s killing be released to the public in its entirety.  Doing so will be in keeping with the true intent of the monumental Independent Investigation Law so many fought so hard for.

We stand with all concerned New Jerseyans who continue to demand information. As Black leaders, we will not back down until all the necessary facts related to this shooting are presented for public review.

Our caucus continues to advocate for all victims who have died for no other reason than being Black in America.  As policymakers, we must continue to speak out against the systemic inequities within our criminal justice, economic, education and health care systems, revealed so painfully during this coronavirus pandemic.

Our hearts are broken for the family of Maurice Gordon, Jr, a young chemistry student with dreams of a bright future.  We mourn with and send condolences to his family while we stand united in our call for justice in his name.  We demand answers to how a routine traffic stop ended in his death.  And we demand a response directly from Governor Murphy himself.

Where there is no justice, there will be no peace.