Almost a year later, residents honor the life of Atatiana Jefferson, call for justice
Hurt, angry and sad.
That’s how Veronica Turner of Dallas felt Sunday as she remembered and honored the life of 28-year-old Atatiana Jefferson.
Turner and about 100 others took the day to celebrate Jefferson, a day before the one-year anniversary of her death. The celebration ended with a candlelight vigil.
Jefferson was shot and killed in her home by former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean on Oct. 12, 2019. Dean was arrested and charged with murder in the shooting of Jefferson on Oct. 12, 2019, but he has yet to be tried on the charge. He has been out of jail on a $200,000 bond since Oct. 14, 2019.
No trial date has been set and the coronavirus pandemic delayed many hearings, but the Tarrant County district attorney said recently that she wants to start scheduling hearings again to move the case forward.
At about 3 p.m., those wanting to remember Jefferson and call for justice met to decorate their cars with pictures of her or phrases like “Say her name.” They then started a car parade that ended at Jefferson’s home.
Tuner said it’s important that people don’t ever forget Jefferson. It happened almost a year ago, but that doesn’t take away from the importance of her case and what happened in the Fort Worth community.
“I want justice,” she said.
This past week, Turner re-lived all the emotions she felt when she got the news Jefferson was killed. She remembers letting out a scream. Turner was close to Jefferson and Yolanda Carr, Jefferson’s mother. Turner remembers going to Jefferson’s college graduation and being proud.
At the parade was attorney Lee Merritt, who represents the Jefferson family.
He said what happened to Jefferson and countless others across the country erodes the trust the Black community has with law enforcement. He said it’s inexplicable that a welfare check turned into a tragedy.
The problem with law enforcement is that it’s over militarized, Merritt said.
To create change, there needs to be a change in policy on the local and federal levels, he said. Merritt said officials also need to get rid of qualified immunity for officers.
It doesn’t help to get justice in one case like Amber Guyger, who was sentenced to 10 years for the murder of Botham Jean in his own Dallas apartment, because shortly after that Jefferson was killed in her home, he said.
Merritt also represented Jean’s family and said Guyger’s sentence wasn’t adequate, but is hoping Dean gets something more substantial.
Kwame Osei Jr. of Enough is Enough, a protest group in Fort Worth, said the country has a poor foundation when it comes to police brutality and for it to be fixed there needs to be a radical change.
“The law in this country and in our state was made without people of color in mind,” Osei said. “So you can’t fix that. You have to dismantle it and rebuild it.”
What happened to Jefferson has made Osei’s children fear that it can be him that’s next. It’s especially scary because the neighbor who called thought he was doing the right thing, but it ended in an officer murdering another Black person, he said.
“Police officers are not trying to be police officers anymore,” he said. “Every single scenario is like a moment from ‘Call of Duty.’”
This story was originally published October 11, 2020 at 6:17 PM.
