FORT WORTH, Texas — Amber Carr, one of Atatiana Jefferson’s sisters, has been diagnosed with congestive heart failure, according to the Carr family’s attorney.
Amber Carr has had health issues for some time, and the 33-year-old attended many court hearings in the Aaron Dean case while in a wheel chair. On Wednesday, Lee Merritt, who represents Jefferson’s family in a civil suit against the City of Fort Worth, said in an Instagram post that doctors have given Amber Carr a “terminal prognosis.”
“This is the face of a woman that doctors just told only has a few days left to live,” reads the post, which shows a photo of Amber Carr in a hospital bed. However, the post says, “Amber has decided to keep living for her boys.”
Amber Carr’s then 8-year-old son Zion Carr was in the family’s house the night Dean shot and killed Jefferson in October 2019. Dean, who was a Fort Worth police officer at the time, was investigating a call at the home after a neighbor called the non-emergency line to report the front door was open — he said that was unusual at the late hour. Dean and his partner went into the backyard without announcing themselves. Inside, Zion and his aunt were playing video games. When Jefferson heard someone in the yard, she went to the window with a gun and looked outside. Dean shot her through the window.
Amber Carr and her surviving sister, Ashley Carr, sought justice for Atatiana for three years. A jury found Dean guilty of manslaughter on Dec. 15 and sentenced him on Dec. 20 to more than 11 years in prison.
“Despite the medical prognosis we believe Amber has the spirit to fight that can overcome the limitations of her body,” Merritt’s Instagram post says. “Do you believe? Amber missed Christmas with her boys so today we are celebrating Christmas at her bedside.”
The post asks for prayers and donations to help the family cover the cost of medical care, as well as living expenses and child care. Merritt linked to GoFundMe to provide support for the family.
Jefferson’s mother, Yolanda Carr, died of congestive heart failure 90 days after her daughter was killed inside their home. In a lawsuit filed against the city in May 2021, Jefferson’s family accused the city, former Mayor Betsy Price and former Police Chief Ed Kraus of contributing to Yolanda Carr’s death due to the immense stress that Jefferson’s death caused the family.
In a statement after Yolanda Carr’s death in January 2020, Merritt wrote the family was devastated by the mother’s untimely death.
“Police brutality impacts entire families, communities and generations,” he wrote in the 2020 statement. “There is no doubt Ms. Carr’s recovery was complicated by the tragedy of her daughter’s death and the difficulty associated with the ongoing fight for justice. We will continue the fight in her honor.”
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