By Daniella Silva -
NBC News
A white former Texas police officer who fatally shot a black woman through the window of her home in October 2019 was sentenced Tuesday to 11 years and 10 months in prison.
Aaron Dean was found guilty of manslaughter Thursday in the death of Atatiana Jefferson, 28, who was playing video games with her eight-year-old nephew when the tragedy struck.
Dean went to Jefferson's house after a neighbor called 911 around 2:00 am to say he had noticed the door was open.
Before sentencing, jurors heard testimony from witnesses, including Jefferson's brother and a forensic psychologist who conducted a psychological evaluation on former police officer Aaron Dean before he became an officer in Fort Worth.
Kyle Clayton, the psychologist, explained to the jury that
Dean was "psychologically unfit to serve as a police officer"
and an evaluation suggested that he "had a narcissistic personality" that inhibited his judgment and "made him more likely to engage in acts that were significant." danger to himself and others."
Aaron Dean in a photo from December 5, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. Amanda McCoy / AP
The defense argued that, in order to become a police officer, Dean had to pass a psychological evaluation by a panel of three psychologists who determined that he was suitable for the position.
Adarius Carr, Jefferson's older brother, testified that the victim was a loving woman.
He said she had moved to Fort Worth to care for her niece because the boy's mother and grandmother were in the hospital with heart problems.
Carr said
Jefferson was always a "flawless" student and that she dreamed of becoming a doctor
after being diagnosed with diabetes as a preteen.
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The jury also heard from Elizabeth Turner, who accused Dean of touching her breasts without her consent when they were studying at the university.
Dean received a battery citation for this incident, pleaded not guilty, and paid a fine.
Among the defense witnesses was Dean's mother, who said her son became a police officer because he wanted to help people.
“She's smart.
He is a very hard worker,” stated Donna Dean.
“He definitely wants to help people and is very faithful in carrying out his responsibilities.”
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The jury, which deliberated about 13 hours before returning the manslaughter verdict, rejected a murder charge that could have sentenced Dean to life in prison.
The former officer faced a sentence of between two and 20 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter.
The prosecution asked the jury to award him the maximum sentence.
The defense pleaded for probation.
During the trial, Bob Gill, Dean's lawyer,
argued that the former officer acted in self-defense
when he shot Jefferson after seeing a gun through his window.
Gill asserted that Jefferson had the right to protect herself and her home "until the moment she pointed a firearm at a Fort Worth police officer."
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Dean, who testified during the trial, explained that he
believed he was responding to the scene of a robbery
and that he saw an armed person through one of the windows of Jefferson's house.
“I kept looking down the barrel of the gun, and when I saw the barrel pointing at me, I fired a single shot from my service weapon,” he said on the stand.
Prosecutors said Jefferson acted reasonably and was entitled to protect herself and her nephew, Zion Carr, when she drew her gun after hearing noises outside her home in the middle of the night, unaware that police officers were present.
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They also tried to cast doubt on the former police officer's testimony about having seen a weapon, since after shooting, he remained standing in front of the window and did not tell his partner that someone was armed.
"He never said there was a gun, because he didn't know,"
prosecutor R. Dale Smith said.
The 2019 shooting sparked widespread criticism and prompted complaints of police accountability and racial justice in law enforcement.
Dean, who resigned from the police department before his arrest, was indicted in December 2019 on one count of murder.
Jefferson graduated from Xavier University in Louisiana with a degree in chemistry.
He returned home to help his relatives who were dealing with health problems and planned to attend medical school.
