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FORT WORTH — Jurors are expected to hear closing arguments Monday in the sentencing phase of the trial for Aaron Dean, the former Fort Worth officer convicted of manslaughter in the 2019 killing of Atatiana Jefferson.
The same Tarrant County jurors who convicted Dean, who is white, in the shooting death of Jefferson, who was Black will begin deliberating his sentence after closing arguments. They found Dean, 38, guilty of manslaughter Thursday after weighing his guilt for about 14 hours over two days, drawing mixed reactions from the community.
The jury rejected a murder charge, which could have led to a life sentence.
Dean faces two to 20 years in prison but could also be eligible for probation. Dean had been free on bond but was jailed after his manslaughter conviction.
Friday, witnesses called by both sides testified about Jefferson and Dean’s character for the trial’s punishment phase, including a psychologist who said he evaluated Dean before he was hired by Fort Worth police and concluded Dean wasn’t fit for police work. Dean successfully appealed the psychologist’s finding and finished the police academy in 2018.
Dean shot Jefferson, 28, through her bedroom window from the backyard of her mother’s East Fort Worth home Oct. 12, 2019. A concerned neighbor called a nonemergency police line because the home’s doors were open and lights were on inside. Jefferson and her 8-year-old nephew, Zion Carr, were playing video games and left the doors open to air out smoke after they burned hamburgers at dinnertime. Jefferson, an aspiring doctor raised in Dallas’ Oak Cliff, moved into the home to care for her ailing mother and Zion, whose mother was also in poor health.
Key questions for the jury during the trial’s guilt-innocence phase were whether Dean saw Jefferson’s gun — which she grabbed when she heard a noise in the backyard — and if he was justified as an on-duty officer to shoot her. Dean testified he saw the barrel of Jefferson’s gun. His lawyers said in opening statements he also saw a green laser attached to his gun pointed at him, but Dean did not testify to that.
Prosecutors argued since the trial began Dec. 5 that Jefferson had a right to defend herself and Dean didn’t see Jefferson’s gun or follow proper procedures when he arrived at the home. Defense attorneys said Dean acted within his Fort Worth police training to meet deadly force with deadly force.
Dean and a fellow officer did not announce themselves when they responded to the call, which was another focus of the five days of testimony. Dean said he didn’t announce their presence because he suspected a burglary was in progress and he didn’t want to alert a perpetrator.
The punishment phase was the first time jurors heard much about who Jefferson was. Adarius Carr, Jefferson’s brother, testified that Jefferson was a tomboy and stellar student.
Ashley Carr, Jefferson’s oldest sister, told jurors that since Jefferson’s death, Zion struggles with emotional outbursts and often misses school. The now-11-year-old has been in counseling since 2019, she said.
Dean’s mother, brother and sister also took the stand Friday, and Dean’s mother told jurors he liked to dote on his sister when he was a child. The defense also called to the stand Fort Worth police detective Thomas Dugan, who testified that Dean was “pretty torn up” after killing Jefferson.
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Jurors hear final arguments before deciding Aaron Dean's sentence - The Dallas Morning News
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