A Little About CJ
Clate (CJ) was born and raised in Washington, D.C., a proud product of the inner city. He grew up in Anacostia with his mother and father, then later, he and his mom moved with his grandmother to Fairfax Village in Southeast D.C. Clate graduated from McKinley Tech Senior High School, School of Communications in Northeast, D.C. “Tech” allowed him to frequent Howard University Football games, where he was part of a youth television production team that filmed Howard’s games for The Broadcast Factory — a video production company run by Harry Davis, a videographer for NBC 4 Washington.
Clate’s mom and dad separated early in his life. Now living with his grandmother, his mom fought a long, difficult battle with drug addiction – sometimes, this addiction would win. His grandmother provided him with balance and became an outlet for much-needed normalcy in his life. Because of these challenges, he was exposed to plenty of police presence at home and in the community. He was offered a picture of law enforcement that would be different from what others observed, and it would be enduring.
After graduating high school, Clate joined the workforce to help pay bills. His first real full-time job was working for Wilson-Powell Lincoln Mercury in Temple Hills (the one with the cougar in the parking lot). After that, he fulfilled his desire to become a police officer so more people who looked like him could be in that role. He started his career with the Metro Transit Police Department in Washington, D.C., before joining the Howard County Police Department, where his career spanned eighteen years.
Howard County is where Clate would do his most gratifying and honored work. He was awarded the second highest accommodation (Silver Star) for his actions of saving a person’s life after they had been stabbed without using deadly force. While in patrol and other positions, he would be awarded plenty more accolades throughout the years, from Police Officer of the Month to exceptional dedication to service. In his assignment in the Maryland Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, he helped bring to a successful conclusion a multitude of cases that involved the exploitation of children to the most violent of crimes; this assignment was the most rewarding to him of them all.
In 2018, Clate’s career in Howard County would come to an end after slowly falling severely ill and making the mistake of ignoring it. From 2016 through 2017, his condition became progressively worse, and he had difficulty working. He would miss work and was so deeply afraid of what may be ailing him that he remained silent. After the byproduct of his illness became too apparent to hide, it would be revealed that he had stage FOUR cancer – a diagnosis that is often terminal. This experience taught many lessons: personal health, awareness, self-care, and healthcare affordability became extremely important to him after this experience. It is his hope that when more people hear his story, they get help sooner and without fear or barriers. Later, in 2018, Clate was in complete remission with a new life and mission.
Clate is summa cum laude from Coppin State University, receiving his BS in Criminal Justice and Political Science. He is magna cum laude from Bowie State University, receiving his Masters in Public Administration (MPA) concentrating in Management and Public Policy. And he is magna cum laude from the University of Maryland Frances King Carey School of Law, receiving his Juris Masters (MSL) in Homeland Security Law and Crisis Management Law.
Clate currently works in the Executive Office of the Comptroller of Maryland. He previously served as Chief of Staff to Senators Obie Patterson and Ron Watson, working for the constituents of Legislative Districts 26 and 23, respectively, and then as Senior Advisor to Delegate Marvin E. Holmes, Jr, also of the 23rd Legislative District. He has worked on many projects in several policy areas to the benefit of Prince Georgians, in addition to overseeing the day-to-day operations while in these offices. He received a Maryland State Citation from Senator Obie Patterson for his work serving the constituents of the 26th District.
Clate had the privilege to work on many projects, including drafting bills and making recommendations to heads of state agencies for the betterment of the State of Maryland and Prince Georgians. Some of those projects include a Route 210 traffic safety overhaul – an initiative very dear to him; increasing access to health insurance for the disadvantaged in Maryland; environmental justice initiatives; and tackling the permanent damage caused by landfills and power plants. He’s authored bills that addressed reforming Maryland’s expungement process (shortening the time when expungements are eligible) and removing the ability of Maryland colleges and universities to reject someone's admission into their institution solely based on one’s alleged criminal background.
Clate is the Vice President of a 501c6 nonprofit. He is a member of Ebenezer A.M.E. Church in Fort Washington, Maryland (by way of New Macedonia Baptist Church in Southeast, D.C.), and he is a member of the Prince George’s County branch of the NAACP, serving as Chair of the NEXTGen Committee and the Committee on Elections and Candidate Engagement. Clate served as a Delegate to the 81st Annual NAACP State Conference Convention.