A former Texas officer who shot and killed a black girl by way of a window at her dwelling in October 2019 was discovered responsible of homicide on Thursday.
Aaron Dean, a white Fort Price police officer, fatally shot Atiana Jefferson, a 28-year-old black girl who was at dwelling enjoying video video games together with her 8-year-old nephew earlier than being shot. Dean was responding to Jefferson’s dwelling when a involved neighbor known as a non-emergency line round 2 a.m. to say she noticed an open entrance door.
The jury, which may have convicted Dean of homicide, returned its verdict after deliberating for greater than 10 hours. He faces two to twenty years in jail for the homicide conviction.
Tarrant County Prosecutor Ashley Deaner mentioned throughout closing arguments on Wednesday that Jefferson heard noises exterior his dwelling in the course of the evening and grabbed his gun, when Jefferson took motion to guard himself and his nephew, Zion Carr. Labored inside rights. She didn’t know that the cops have been at her residence.
“We now have not seen a shred of proof that something Atatiana did was unlawful. The truth is, we heard the alternative,” he mentioned. “Atiana Jefferson didn’t commit a prison act by strolling as much as the window together with her gun, considering somebody was exterior. That is what many people would do. That is what you’ll anticipate us to do to attempt to shield ourselves and that is the case.” , Zion too.”
Dean’s protection legal professional, Bob Gill, mentioned that whereas Jefferson’s demise was tragic, “a tragedy doesn’t all the time equal a criminal offense” and that the previous officer was performing in self-defense when he shot Jefferson when he noticed the gun within the window. .
Gill mentioned that Jefferson had the proper to defend himself and his dwelling “so long as he didn’t level a firearm at a Fort Price police officer.”
Gill additionally mentioned that Dean’s testimony was in line with what Zion had informed a baby forensics interviewer shortly after the taking pictures that her aunt pointed the gun on the window. At trial, Zion testifies that his gun was nonetheless with him when his aunt was shot.
Zion additionally defined why the entrance and aspect doorways have been open as a result of he by accident burned hamburgers whereas making ready dinner. He additionally testified that Jefferson took out his gun, which was legally in his possession, as a result of he heard noises exterior the home and believed there may be an intruder.
Earlier within the trial, Dean took the stand in his protection, saying that he thought he was reacting to the scene of the housebreaking and noticed a determine in a window of the Jefferson dwelling.
“I assumed we had a thief and so I backed away, straightened up and drew my weapon after which pointed it on the determine,” he mentioned.
He mentioned he couldn’t see the person’s palms and commenced yelling for Jefferson to place his palms up after which a gun appeared.
Dean mentioned on the witness stand, “I am wanting proper down the barrel of the gun and after I noticed the barrel of that gun, I fired a single shot from my responsibility weapon.”
Prosecutors say proof at trial confirmed Dean didn’t see a gun in Jefferson’s hand as he claims. Prosecutors mentioned that Dean’s actions confirmed that he was not sure of what he had seen within the window earlier than he shot Jefferson and that proof confirmed that Jefferson was bent over, pointing the gun at Dean. Pointing was not shifting ahead.
Prosecutor R. Dale Smith, in his rebuttal on Wednesday, sought to solid doubt on Dean’s testimony about seeing the gun earlier than he shot Jefferson, saying that even after Dean shot him, he remained standing in entrance of the window and checked out his confederate. didn’t inform after they entered the home that he had seen a weapon, “as a result of he was unsure what was on the opposite aspect of that window.”
“What officer would permit one in all his comrades to run right into a home the place they thought a housebreaking was happening saying, ‘Hey, there is a gun in there?’ Smith requested.
“He by no means mentioned there was a gun as a result of he did not know,” he mentioned.
Throughout his testimony, Dean said that after Jefferson was shot, he was briefly blinded by the muzzle flash. “When my imaginative and prescient turned clear – she mentioned – then I noticed the individual we now know to be Miss Jefferson. I heard her scream after which noticed her fall.”
Throughout cross-examination, Smith questioned whether or not Dean had sufficient info and time to shoot on the home when solely between 1 minute and 17 seconds after he turned on his digicam, approached the home and shot Jefferson. Gave.
Dean additionally admitted that he didn’t declare himself as a police officer upon arrival, saying that he believed there was an lively housebreaking on the scene and that the police division mustn’t declare in such conditions. was “widespread observe”. He later admitted underneath questioning from Smith that he had made such a declaration on the scene of a minimum of one different housebreaking.
The prosecution raised the problem of whether or not Dean’s sequence of actions and selections that evening amounted to “good police work”, to which the previous officer repeatedly replied, “No.”
Prosecutors have additionally argued that Dean shot Jefferson “not a second” after yelling for him to maneuver his palms, with out giving him time to behave and obey his instructions.
The prosecution and protection additionally known as regulation enforcement consultants to testify whether or not Dean’s actions that evening have been acceptable, whether or not he ought to have introduced himself, and whether or not he may have taken different steps to stop Jefferson’s demise. .
The taking pictures of Jefferson in 2019 drew widespread criticism and requires police accountability and racial justice in regulation enforcement.
Dean, who resigned from the Fort Price Police Division previous to his arrest, was indicted by a Texas grand jury on a homicide cost in December 2019.
Jefferson graduated from Xavier College in Louisiana with a level in chemistry. She returned dwelling after faculty to assist assist a household with well being issues and was planning on attending medical college.
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