Atatiana Jefferson is the latest black female victim to lose her life to racial bias and excessive police force. The 28-year old, was shot to death in her own home by a police officer in Fort Worth Dallas, Texas in the early morning hours of Oct.12th. Atatiana was playing a video game with her nephew just moments before her death.
Initial crime details revealed that…….
A neighbor called a non-emergency number police to produce a ‘wellness check’ at Atatiana’s home after noticing that the house door was left open. Body camera footage shows officer, Aaron Dean keenly scanning through ‘two open doors’ without announcing his presence. Dean suddenly approaches a window and can be heard saying; ‘Put Your Hands Up’ , and within two-seconds, Jefferson is shot dead. Dean never identified himself as a police officer, barely finished his order before he fired.
Initially it was unclear as to whether Jefferson’s nephew witnessed his Aunt’s murder, but we know of certainty now that the ‘eight year-old child’ suffered a traumatic ordeal, and will need wellness support to heal from that lingering trauma. Jefferson’s attorney Lee Merritt Esq. has confirmed that the child never left the room and saw his ‘Aunt Tay’ hit the floor.
New investigative updates…..
New details have emerged about Dean’s encounter with Jefferson. The call that Officer Dean and his partner received was an ‘open structure call’. What that means is – that officers were to approach the scene with safety and concern that there may be a possible burglary or break-in. This narrative is to give reason as to why officer Dean entered Jefferson’s residence with haste and his weapon drawn, but it’s not an erasure of what illegally took place.
Atatiana Jefferson, the youngest of three siblings, college graduate, and loving Aunt had future intentions of becoming a doctor. Atatiana was also licensed to carry a weapon. This narrative was announced to bring light to the gun that was found at the scene of the crime to justify the rationale behind Dean’s impulse in killing Jefferson. Texas is a ‘stand your ground law’ state; and thus justifies the rationale behind Atatiana’s decision to draw for her weapon and provide safety to her nephew who overheard noises in the backyard area.
Officer Dean resigned before receiving his ‘admin leave with pay’ and has been charged with murder. This case shows us yet again the ugly side of inadequate policing; racial profiling and bias practices that many non-black police officers have with their encounters with black citizens.
Again, we bear witness to the smoke and mirror tactics that are being used to protect the badge and honor of the ‘blue code of silence’. Atatiana’s tragic death is NOT about the neighbor whose intent was to provide safety to his fellow neighbor, the ‘good cops vs. bad cops’ debate, nor the ‘all lives matter’ debacle that begins and ends with ‘but what about black on black crime’ as if ‘white on white crime’ doesn’t exist. All of it exists, but when will these narratives change?
” Every Single Time Police Kill Black People, They Are Given Time To Alter Their Story, Time To Villainize The Victim, And Time To Figure Out How They Will Escape Accountability. ”
Botham Jean was a 26 year – old accountant who was eating ice cream in his own home before his life was taken by an officer. Atatiana was playing a video game with her nephew in her home before her life was taken by an officer.
This is about the systematic pattern of death of innocent black lives that are taken away egregiously at the hands of non-black officers because of the historical tensions and public discourse between the two groups.
The common thread in most of the highlighted media cases (ie: Eric Gardner, Michael Brown, Ryan Twyman, Jaquayvion Slaton, Tamir Rice, Stephen Clark, EJ Bradford, Gregory Hill, Botham Jean etc.) are unarmed black persons vs. armed police who are trained to kill.
” There Needs To Be A Systematic Change Within Law Enforcement, And Community Policing That Involves US Protecting US As Well. ”
In the case of Atatiana Jefferson, the slighted difference was Jefferson had the right to arm herself. Yet, her encounter with Dean brought her the same result as the above mentions. Fort Worth Texas police dept. immediately uploaded a photo of a weapon found at the scene to calm the media uproar. But after the body cam footage was released, the police sheriff and top officials apologized for their actions.
As a collective, we must be consciously aware of the ‘apology‘ trend that is being used to appease our outrage and not value of our lives!
For what good is an apology when the actions of the apologists are repetitive thereafter?
One Love PLUMS!