FORT WORTH, Texas — Shouts erupted outside a Tarrant County courtroom Thursday as activists and community leaders decried that a former Fort Worth officer found guilty of manslaughter wouldn’t face a more serious conviction for fatally shooting Atatiana Jefferson in 2019.
Some residents, however, saw the conviction as a small, but meaningful, step toward police accountability — and celebrated that Aaron Dean, 38, wouldn’t walk free. Dean faces up to 20 years in prison. The jury rejected a murder charge, which carries a sentence of up to life in prison.
“This is a first,” said Lesa Pamplin, an attorney and friend of the Jefferson family. “I’m glad (after) everybody talked about the makeup of the jury, that these folks gave a good, hard look at the evidence and they didn’t rush it. I’m happy, not pleased, but I’m happy they got the manslaughter charge.”
Although some of the 12 jurors and two alternates are people of color, none are Black. The Tarrant County jury deliberated Dean’s guilt for about 14 hours over two days.
Dean, who is white, shot Jefferson through her bedroom window from her backyard after a concerned neighbor called a non-emergency police line about 2:30 a.m. Oct. 12, 2019, because the home’s doors were open and the lights were on inside. Jefferson, who was Black, and her 8-year-old nephew were playing video games and left the doors open after they burned hamburgers at dinnertime.
Prosecutors argued Dean did not act in self-defense when he fired at Jefferson, while defense lawyers said Dean acted within his Fort Worth police training to meet deadly force with deadly force because Jefferson had a gun. Dean testified he saw the barrel of Jefferson’s gun when he fired.
Court resumes Friday morning for the punishment phase. Some residents and activists focused their sentiments on the forthcoming sentence, which will be decided by the jury.
Rev. Crystal Bates, who leads the DFW Metro NAACP unit, hopes the jury’s sentence sets a precedent. She said Black women like her are tired of “living in constant fear” for their children, family and friends.
”We have systemic issues that need to be addressed,” Bates said. “Over and over and over again, I see this happen to somebody who looks like me, somebody with my skin color. My skin color should not make me a criminal — I shouldn’t be guilty just because I’m Black.”
Reaction in the courthouse
Tears welled in the eyes of Adarius Carr, Jefferson’s brother, as he and their sister, Ashley, held hands as they were ushered out of the courtroom. Ashley Carr nodded as the verdict was read.
Dean remained expressionless. His family hugged him after the verdict. His father patted his arm then silently walked past journalists, activists and relatives outside the courtroom.
Some Fort Worth activists briskly left the courtroom after the verdict was read, and other people waiting outside the courtroom immediately began to scream.
Lee Merritt, an attorney who represents Jefferson’s family in a civil lawsuit, was at the Tarrant County courthouse throughout the trial. He expressed disappointment in the verdict.
“This family has waited for this for a very long time — we think the appropriate sentence was murder,” Merritt said as a woman screamed “Damn right it’s murder!”
The Dallas-based social justice nonprofit organization Next Generation Action Network, which had criticized the prosecutors’ case during the trial, said in a statement it was pleased the jury realized the shooting was a crime, but said Dean should’ve been convicted of murder.
“We must all continue to understand that there is a lot of work to be done in regard to the city of Fort Worth in the levels of corruption that were mentioned in this trial,” the nonprofit said. “We want city leaders to know they failed the community at large.”
Politicians, police react
The office of Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker and the City of Fort Worth said in a statement the verdict provided a measure of justice but doesn’t change “that a tragedy occurred that should have never happened.” A casket bearing Jefferson’s name and other people shot by Fort Worth police was left outside Parker’s home during the trial, prompting a police response to the mayor’s residence.
“This tragedy for me has always been about Atatiana Jefferson — about her life as a daughter, sister, and aunt, and her lasting legacy,” the city’s statement said. “Many people in our community are hurting, and we must come together with compassion and grace.”
The Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, whose executive director met with Dean and his family this week, said on Twitter it was thinking about the families and communities impacted by the case. The organization said it respects the process and “remains committed to our honored duty of representing our members in the most dangerous & difficult profession in this country.”
Allison Jean — the mother of Botham Jean, who was murdered in 2018 in his apartment by off-duty Dallas police officer Amber Guyger while she was still in uniform — told The Dallas Morning News she watched snippets of the trial and thought prosecutors did a good job proving murder.
Jean has been outspoken about police reform since her son was murdered and is now a senator in St. Lucia. She said she thought Dean would join Guyger, who was convicted of murder in 2019 after she shot Botham Jean when she mistook him for an intruder. Guyger is now serving a 10-year prison sentence. Texas’ highest criminal court upheld her murder conviction in March after she tried to appeal.
Jean said Thursday she wasn’t pleased at all when she heard the jury’s verdict for Dean.
“He deserves a murder conviction,” she said.
U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, whose district includes Fort Worth, said in a written statement the verdict was a small step toward delivering justice for Jefferson and her family. But, he added, “it will never give Atatiana her life back or return her to her family.”
“This verdict underscores the important work that needs to be done locally and nationally to ensure a tragedy like this one does not happen again,” Veasey said. “Going forward, the Tarrant County District Attorney must thoroughly and properly investigate cases like this and fight hard enough for fair jury representation.”
Pete Schulte, a former detective with DeSoto police who also practiced law in North Texas, said in a tweet he expects Dean to appeal. He said Dean’s actions were intentional and knowing, not reckless, when he fired the shot, adding it appeared the jury made a “compromise” decision to convict him for manslaughter.
The difference between murder and manslaughter is whether jurors believed Dean acted intentionally or knowingly for a murder conviction versus recklessly for manslaughter.
Before Dean’s arrest, no Tarrant County officer had ever faced a murder charge, the district attorney’s office said at the time.
