The murder trial of a former Fort Worth police officer has already been delayed for a long time.
Now, it's being delayed even longer.
Aaron Dean's lawyers have asked Judge David Hagerman to recuse himself from the case, saying his demeanor towards them will prevent a fair trial.
Hagerman refused; and thus, before jury selection can begin, a hearing will have to take place on that motion in front of another judge.
Dean is charged with murder in the October 2019 shooting death of Atatiana Jefferson inside her home.
Opening statements were scheduled to begin next week; but now, that's not going to happen.
The hearing into the defense motion to remove Judge Hagerman from the case will not happen until the last week of the month, at earliest.
The judge who will hear the case has not yet been selected.
And the delays in Dean's trial are causing tempers to build.
"The defense team doesn't realize it's 100-plus degrees this week, and it's easy to start a riot," said community activist Cory Session, who helped arrange a meeting between parties in the wake of Jefferson's death to head-off angry protests. "They are creating sparks to cause a riot and massive protests in this town because they don't want their client to face justice.
"It's a powder keg that could explode at any time," Session continues. "There's absolute frustration, disappointment, anger in the community of Fort Worth behind this trial not taking place."
Session said there's no logical reason why this trial should not have already taken place by now.
"This case happened before the death of George Floyd, and the case of George Floyd has gone through the judicial system," Session said. "Those people have been found guilty ... and sentenced. And this case happened before that, and (a trial) still has not even happened."
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