For Atatiana Jefferson’s neighbor, break-in at her Fort Worth home is another tragedy
A little more than seven months ago, James Smith requested police check on his neighbor in south Fort Worth because he was concerned her doors were open around 2 a.m. What happened next still torments him: Former Officer Aaron Dean shot Atatiana Jefferson inside of her own home, killing her.
Smith, who has been checking up on the home for Jefferson’s family ever since their mother, Yolanda Carr, died in January, noticed the screen door was open when he awoke Friday morning. He approached the home by himself.
The door behind the screen door was locked, so he simply moved it back to the way it should be and proceeded to do his normal inspection of the property. After walking up their driveway into the backyard, he saw screens from one of the windows lying on the ground. There was a discarded vacuum cleaner in the alley behind the home.
He called Jefferson’s sisters, the current owners, and sent them photos of the vacuum. They confirmed it had belonged to their mother.
When Smith went inside, the house was trashed — piles of boxes and papers covering the floor, food left out in the kitchen, shelves empty and ransacked.
“Myself as well as the Carr children are dealing with post-traumatic stress. We’re still dealing with the Minneapolis situation. We’re still dealing with other situations similar to Atatiana’s,” Smith said over the phone Saturday morning. “This was just on top of the trauma that we’re already experiencing.”
The incident in Minneapolis, where a white officer fatally knelt on the neck of George Floyd as he protested that he couldn’t breathe, has brought Smith and the Carr children back to how they felt in October. Jefferson’s death prompted the Fort Worth community and people around the country to express their anger about what felt like an all-too familiar incident.
Dean, who was later indicted for murder, didn’t announce he was a police officer when he walked around the home, bodycam videos showed. Police initially said he fired at Jefferson through a window because he perceived a threat. But she had only been playing video games with her nephew, the family’s attorney said.
The recent break-in at the Carr home, for Smith, feels like another in a long line of tragedies for the family.
Whoever broke into the home entered through a window in the back, which was shattered, Smith said. It was the same window the family had only recently purchased to replace the one Dean shot through.
Smith posted photos of the home to Facebook on Friday, writing tragedy seems to be repeating for the family. Ashley Carr, one of Jefferson’s sisters, shared his post on Facebook and said she was beyond words.
It was the home where both her sister and her mother died, she wrote. “JUST KNOW YOU ARE FUELING THE FIRE.”
Smith reported the incident to police after talking with the Carr sisters, who — like him — were reluctant but figured it was the right thing to do. Officers came by the home and spoke with Smith on Friday, he said.
The department said in an email on Saturday officers responded to a report the home was burglarized. They “made the scene and a report was made,” a spokesman said.
Smith didn’t want to discuss which items were stolen since it’s an ongoing investigation. He said he “wouldn’t have any earthly idea” why someone would vandalize the home, and he hopes police are able to identify the suspect or suspects.
“I hope they do it right this time,” he said.
He’s become tired of delivering bad news to the Carr children, he said. In January, when Yolonda Carr died, he was supposed to have lunch with her at a barbecue restaurant that was opening. A fire truck pulled up to her house before that happened, and he walked across the street to watch the paramedics try to save her for roughly 45 minutes.
He was on the phone with the Carr daughters the whole time, giving them updates, he said. He had to tell them their mother died.
The family has been through tragedies, like “all black families,” he said. He has tried to help them out by looking after their property each week, collecting their mail, tending to the yard and checking on the home.
He was planning on joining the peaceful George Floyd rally in downtown Fort Worth on Friday until he saw the screen door was open.
“For whatever reason, the Lord has my eyes on this property,” said Smith, who has lived on the block for about 50 years. “I’ve been watching this property before a house was even on the property.”
This story was originally published May 30, 2020 at 2:01 PM.
