What You Should Know About The Trial Of Ex-Cop Who Killed Atatiana Jefferson
A police officer killed Atatiana Jefferson when she was in her home playing video games with her nephew in 2019. Here's what you should know about the trial, which started Monday.
The trial of Aaron Dean, a former police officer who killed a 28-year-old Black woman in her home in 2019, began on Monday, over three years after the incident.
Atatiana Jefferson was in her home on Oct. 12, 2019 playing video games with her nephew when officers arrived, scanned the perimeter of Jefferson’s home, and shot and killed her. Dean’s attorney argues that he saw a gun pointed at him before shooting her.
A neighbor told reporters at the time that he called the police on a non-emergency line for a “welfare check” after he noticed a door open.
“I called my police department for a welfare check. No domestic violence, no arguing, nothing that they should have been concerned about as far as them coming with guns drawn to my neighbor’s house,” he said. “She wasn’t a threat.”
James Smith said he saw the lights on and front doors open at his neighbor’s home overnight. He said he called a non emergency number for a wellness check. Smith said minutes later he heard a gunshot. @wfaapic.twitter.com/7XYsVBCFz2
According to a family attorney, Jefferson graduated from Xavier University of Louisiana in 2014 with a biology degree and worked in pharmaceutical equipment sales.
Here’s the news in a nutshell.
01
The case will hinge on whether Dean saw Jefferson’s gun before firing
Assistant District Attorney Ashlea Deener said that Jefferson believed the officers were intruders during her opening statement on Monday. As Deener argued, Dean opened fire without giving Jefferson time to comply with commands, adding that “the evidence will support, he did not see the gun in her hands.”
Yffy Yossifor/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
02
Dean’s defense attorney said the former officer was following protocol
Dean’s attorney, Miles Brissette argued on Monday that the officers were following protocol by treating the call as a potential burglary, that the officer’s actions were reasonable, and the shooting was “a tragic accident.”
Yffy Yossifor/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
03
The prosecutor argued that Dean and his ex-partner Carol Darch did not at any point identify themselves as police when scoping out Jefferson’s home
Prosecutor Ashlea Deener told the jury that Jefferson took out her own gun because she heard noises outside and saw a flashlight in her backyard. “She had no idea it was someone who was supposed to serve and protect,” Deener said.
Yffy Yossifor/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
04
Darch told the court on Tuesday that there weren’t any instructions about a welfare check
In court, Darch read off the call details she received before she and Dean arrived.
“Anything about a welfare check on here?” the defense attorney asked. “No sir” she replied.
Dean has since resigned from the department and is being charged with murder.
