Dallas

Key Questions in Aaron Dean Murder Case

Before Tuesday, the only perspective the public had seen is body camera video showing now former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean shooting through a window.

In an arrest affidavit released Tuesday, Atatiana Jefferson's eight-year-old nephew said Jefferson "heard noises coming from outside, took her handgun from her purse... raised her handgun, pointed it toward the window, then Jefferson was shot and fell to the ground."

"That might be an argument the defense uses so it complicates the situation a lot more. It's not as clear cut as we'd first thought," said Toby Shook, an attorney who defended Amber Guyger, the former Dallas officer convicted of murdering Botham Jean in his apartment in 2018.

Shook says if Dean shot because Jefferson had a gun, he could claim self defense.

At a news conference Tuesday, Fort Worth Interim Police Chief Ed Kraus said the gun doesn't give Dean an excuse.

"We never want an officer's response to a call to end in the loss of life," Kraus said.

Shook also says how police were dispatched could be a factor.

A neighbor called for a welfare check after seeing the doors of Jefferson's home open for hours, but officers responded to an open structure call.

"Which would cause them to act differently on how they approach the house," Shook said.

We also still don't know Dean's side of the story.

He resigned from the department before he could be fired but also before filling out a report on the shooting.

"At that point, any reporting requirement that he might have goes 'poof.' He's no longer working there," said Dallas attorney Chad Ruback.

Attorneys say the case could come down to whether a jury believes the officer's actions were reasonable.

They say we may not know Dean's account of what happened until a possible trial.

Dean's lawyer, Jim Lane, tells us Dean is sorry and that his family is in shock.

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