Former Texas Officer on Trial for Fatal Shooting of Black Woman in Her Home

On trial stands Aaron Dean, a former white police officer, facing charges in the shooting incident resulting in the death of Atatiana Jefferson, a 28-year-old Black woman, in October 2019.

Addressing the court during the trial’s commencement, prosecutors emphasized that the fatal shooting of a Texan woman by a police officer through her home’s window was an “unjustifiable act, entirely avoidable.”

Aaron Dean, once a white officer with the Fort Worth police, faces trial for the 2019 killing of Atatiana Jefferson, who, at the time, was engaging in video games with her 8-year-old nephew within the confines of her home.

“This trial isn’t about a criminal enterprise gone awry or a burglary,” asserted Tarrant County prosecutor Ashlea Deener in her opening statements. “It centers around a Fort Worth officer, a stranger to Atatiana, who discharged his firearm through her bedroom window under the cloak of darkness, a place where she should have felt safe.”

The fatal encounter occurred when a concerned neighbor, noting ajar doors, phoned the nonemergency police line. Court documents reveal Jefferson, together with her 8-year-old nephew, Zion Carr, was up late playing video games when the incident unfolded. Dean, as evidenced by police records and body camera footage, failed to announce his identity before firing his weapon, striking Jefferson.

Dean, pleading not guilty to the charge of murder, maintains his innocence.

Prosecutors argued in their opening statements that Dean’s rapid gunfire into Jefferson’s chest allowed her no opportunity to comply with orders such as “Put your hands up! Show me your hands!”

Zion, now 11, recounted in court that the screen doors remained open after an unsuccessful attempt to cook hamburgers for dinner, after which they resumed their gaming session.

The young witness recounted how his aunt, upon hearing suspicious sounds outside, retrieved her firearm, unaware that law enforcement had been summoned to the residence.

Upon witnessing his aunt’s collapse and subsequent distress, Zion testified to feeling fear and uncertainty, unsure whether he was experiencing reality or a nightmare.

During cross-examination, Dean’s legal team raised doubts about Zion’s testimony, questioning whether he had informed a child services worker that Jefferson had brandished her firearm toward the window.

Central to the trial’s proceedings is the debate over whether Dean observed Jefferson’s weapon and perceived it as a threat. Prosecutors assert that evidence will demonstrate he did not witness the firearm in her possession.

“This is not a scenario where officers faced imminent danger necessitating self-defense or protection of a colleague,” stated Deener. “The evidence will show he lacked visibility of the weapon. This isn’t justifiable. It’s murder.”

In his defense, Dean’s attorney, Miles Brissette, argued that Dean, upon spotting a silhouette in the window, interpreted it as a potential threat and reacted accordingly.

“In that moment, he discerns a silhouette,” Brissette explained. “Gender, race—it’s all indiscernible. He perceives the green laser and the firearm aimed at him. He steps back, issues a command, and fires his weapon.”

Brissette contends Dean’s actions were informed by the information relayed to the officers responding to the call, treating the situation as a potentially hazardous environment rather than a wellness check, thereby forgoing an announcement of their presence.

Jefferson’s tragic demise mirrors that of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman fatally shot by police in her Louisville, Kentucky, apartment in March 2020. Both incidents have sparked widespread outcry, fueling demands for police accountability and racial equity within law enforcement.

Dean, who resigned from the Fort Worth Police Department prior to his arrest, was indicted by a Texas grand jury in December 2019 on a charge of murder.