The Speaker

Damon K. Jones is a 33-year Westchester County Department of Corrections veteran. Mr. Jones has served 13 years as a Union Delegate for the Westchester County Correction Officers Benevolent Association (COBA). Mr. Jones has participated in Contract Negotiation, Welfare Fund, and Labor Management Committees.

Mr. Jones is the New York State Representative of Blacks in Law Enforcement of America. From 2006 to 2010, Mr. Jones served as the Northeast Region President of the National Black Police Association. Mr. Jones also served as a national board member and Chair of the National Membership Committee of the National Black Police Association. Mr. Jones is a member of the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice.

With Mr. Jones’ leadership, Blacks in Law in Enforcement of America have been strong advocates for Law Enforcement and community relations, helping to spearhead the Norwood E. Jackson Scholarship Fund, Save our Schools Mentoring Program, How do you know your child’s in a Gang, Are you a Victim of Domestic Violence, How do you Survive Police Confrontation seminars series, and Peacekeepers Initiative.

Mr. Jones was an advisor to Governor Paterson’s NY State Police-on-Police Shooting Task Force on behalf of the National Black Police Association. The Task Force was created to examine the issues and implications arising from police-on-police shootings and confrontations, most notably between on-duty and off-duty officers and examine the disproportionality in shootings of African American officers while on-duty in plain clothes and off-duty. The report was a groundbreaking study to examine racial bias and perceptions within the law enforcement system.

After the unfortunate death of Briana Ojeda, who died from an asthma attack while NYPD Officers refused to administer CPR because NYPD Officers didn't receive yearly CPR training, Mr. Jones assisted the Ojeda family lawyer Bonita Zelman in proposing State Legislation called Briana's Law to mandate that ALL NYPD Officers be trained in CPR. This legislation was sponsored by former NYS Senator Eric Adams and Assemblyman Louis Ortiz.

Mr. Jones has given expert testimony on police policies and procedures on how they rate towards
communities of color for the United Nations International Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), the U.S. Prison System, and Human Rights. On behalf of Blacks in Law Enforcement of America, Mr. Jones’s recommendations were part of the ICERD 2014 Shadow Report.

The Workshop

When Good People Write Bad Policy: Discriminatory Bans and Prohibitions Don’t Work : Wednesday, October 04, 2023 10:30A

Several states and municipalities are proposing to ban the sale of menthol cigarettes. Smoking is bad and tobacco kills in addition to the debilitating effects of nicotine addiction and need to prevent youth from smoking. Prohibitions and flavor bans have been spotlights in the national media. This proposal seems race-neutral. But over 85% of African Americans who choose to smoke prefer menthol cigarettes while most White tobacco consumers prefer unflavored tobacco. To draw up a ban only against products favored by people of color seems not only unjust but also remarkably insensitive. Giving officers even more reason to detain and engage on the basis of a flavored tobacco ban, including menthol, would assuredly lead to encounters that are likely to escalate to the unnecessary use of force, arrests, and possibly deadly force.

The unintended consequences of bans and prohibitions need to be better understood by public policymakers contemplating passing legislation that will directly impact the interactions between members of communities of color and law enforcement officers. This session will explore the laudable intent of the public health community to decrease the use of tobacco products by communities of color, address the serious concerns of youth using tobacco products, and how to stem the tide of youth use of e-cigarettes, and will expound on the lived experiences and expertise of leading Black law enforcement professionals on the unintended consequences of bans and prohibitions.