Both sides rest in former Fort Worth officer Aaron Dean’s murder trial
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Murder Trial of Aaron Dean
The case against Aaron Dean in the shooting of Atatiana Jefferson finally began to unfold Nov. 28, 2022, with jury selection. Dean was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison Dec. 20 after he was convicted of manslaughter. Read the trial coverage here.
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Both sides have rested in the murder trial of former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean on Tuesday after Dean testified on Monday. On Tuesday, the defense called use-of-force expert Jay Coons, and prosecutors called their own expert to counter his testimony.
Jury instructions and closing arguments will take place Wednesday morning and then the jury will begin deliberating.
Watch live video here:
Dean was indicted on a murder charge in the death of Atatiana Jefferson, a 28-year-old Black woman. Dean, who is white, shot Jefferson through a window of her home about 2:30 a.m. on Oct. 12, 2019, while he and another officer were responding to a neighbor’s call about open doors at the house on East Allen Avenue.
The defense is trying to prove that Dean saw Jefferson point a gun at him through the window and that he shot her in self-defense. The prosecution has presented evidence that Dean never said he saw a gun, didn’t identify himself as a police officer and didn’t give first aid to Jefferson to try to save her life.
Dean resigned two days after the shooting and was arrested later that night.
A murder conviction would carry a sentence of five years to life. Jurors likely will also be able to consider lesser charges such as manslaughter.
This story was originally published December 13, 2022 at 8:23 AM.
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