[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4035]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING JEREMY ROMERO

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM

                             of new mexico

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 23, 2015

  Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I rise today 
to honor Jeremy Romero, a man of great integrity who has dedicated his 
life to protecting our communities in New Mexico.
  From a young age Jeremy wanted to be a cop; his father and two uncles 
were police officers and his younger brother started attending a police 
academy in North Carolina. It is, and has always been Jeremy's dream to 
join his family and make it his career to protect the public, and serve 
our great State of New Mexico. In August, 2011, Jeremy had that 
opportunity. He was hired into the New Mexico Department of Public 
Safety's prestigious Special Investigations Division (SID) as an 
undercover agent.
  For Jeremy it was a dream come true, and yet only two months into the 
job, all that would come to an end. Jeremy witnessed a crime being 
committed by a fellow officer. He knew the risk of being a 
whistleblower, but firmly believed in his commitment to upholding and 
preserving the law.
  Jeremy reported the issue to his superiors, and shortly after, lost 
his job. In an interview with the Albuquerque Journal, Jeremy explained 
the strain it put on his daily life, and how he applied to more than 20 
different law enforcement agencies before eventually being hired at the 
Laguna Police Department and later the Corrales Police Department.
  On January 21, 2014, Jeremy's life would forever change. While on an 
early-morning patrol, Jeremy noticed two fugitives speeding down the 
street in a stolen car. Jeremy quickly followed in pursuit, speeding up 
in an attempt to ascertain the license plate numbers. Before Jeremy 
could get a reading on the license plate, his car slipped off the road 
and collided into a guide rail, telephone pole and adobe wall.
  The crash was devastating for Jeremy--he burst a vertebra in his 
lower back that nearly paralyzed him, had to have pastes made to sculpt 
a new vertebra, and underwent several emergency surgeries. Doctors 
predicted that Jeremy would never walk again. Jeremy knew they were 
wrong; he may have broken some bones, but that did not mean his spirit 
was broken. In an interview, Jeremy explained: ``If you tell me I'm not 
going to do something, I'm going to work twice as hard to prove you 
wrong.'' Jeremy did exactly that. In the face of adversity, Jeremy 
prevailed.
  Jeremy is now using revolutionary robotics to help him walk again and 
continues to break barriers with the technology. Jeremy's story is 
remarkable; his dedication to safeguarding the public, deep moral 
character, and persistence and determination will continue to be an 
inspiration for future generations.

                          ____________________