A Texas police officer fatally shot a woman through a window in her Texas home.
Aaron Dean, a former Fort Worth police officer of color, is currently on trial for the 2019 murder of Atatiana Jeff. This 28-year old Black woman was playing video games at her home with her 8 year-old nephew.
In opening statements, Tarrant County prosecutor Ashlea deener stated Monday that this is not a case of a drug deal gone wrong or a robbery. “This case is about a Fort Worth officer, a stranger To Atatiana, that shot through her bedroom window in middle of the night, when she was at her home, and should have been protected.”
After a neighbor saw that a door was unlocked, Dean shot Jefferson and called the nonemergency line. According to court documents, Jefferson was playing video games late at night and caring for Zion Carr, her 8-year old nephew. According to body camera footage and police, Dean did not identify himself before he fired his weapon on Jefferson.
Dean pleaded not guilty Monday in the murder case.
Opening arguments were held. During opening arguments, Dean was accused of shooting Jefferson through the window into her chest “not one second.” After shouting, “Put you hands up!” Show me your hands!
Deener stated that Dean fired his weapon so fast that Jefferson didn’t have enough time to “process and follow the commands”.
Zion, now 11 years old, testified Monday that the screen doors had been opened after his aunt and he had cooked hamburgers for dinner. They continued playing video games until the early hours of the morning.
Zion claimed that his aunt pulled out her gun after hearing the noises outside and kept it with her. They were unaware that police had been called.
Although the boy claimed he didn’t hear or see anything outside, his aunt suggested that the noises could have been made by a raccoon.
Zion claimed that he saw his aunt fall on the ground and start “crying, shaking” and was not sure if he was dreaming.
Dean’s lawyers asked whether Zion had revealed to a child case worker that Jefferson had pointed her gun at the window after the shooting.
The trial will focus on whether Dean saw Jefferson’s gun or whether he believed that it was pointed at his face. Monday’s testimony by the prosecution stated that it was impossible to prove that Dean saw Jefferson’s gun.
Deener stated that this is not an instance where they are staring at a barrel of a gun. He had to defend himself or protect his partner. The evidence will show that he didn’t see the gun in his partner’s hand. This is not a defense. This is not a case of self-defense. This is murder.
Miles Brissette was Dean’s attorney. He stated that Dean saw a gun raised and gave the command to fire.
He said, “In that window, he sees the silhouette.” He doesn’t know whether it’s male or female, nor does he know its racial make-up. He looks up and sees the gun and green laser. He takes a step back and gives a command before he fires his weapon.
Brissette stated that Dean reacted in the same way because of the information provided to them when they responded. He stated that Dean and another officer were not making an announcement, but treating the situation like an “open structure”, not as a wellness check.
Jefferson’s death echos the fate of Breonna Taylor (26-year-old Black woman shot to death by police in her Louisville, Kentucky apartment in March 2020). Both shootings drew widespread condemnation and led to calls for police accountability as well as racial justice within law enforcement.
Dean, who had resigned from Fort Worth Police Department before his arrest, was charged with murder by a Texas grand jury in December 2019.
Jefferson received a degree from Xavier University in chemistry. After college, she returned home to care for her family and was eager to go to medical school.
