Former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean testified in his defense Monday in his murder trial.
Dean fatally shot Atatiana Jefferson on Oct. 12, 2019, when he responded to a welfare call at Jefferson's home.
Monday morning, Dean said he never saw victim Jefferson's face before he opened fire, and only saw her fall after he fired a shot. He said he thought there was a burglar who was pointing a gun at him. But prosecutor Marvin Brown asked why Dean didn't identify himself as a police officer.
"It comes down to his credibility as to whether the jury believes him, his explanation, if he was really in fear and if it was reasonable for him to shoot," said criminal defense attorney Toby Shook, who is not involved in Dean's trial.
During the first week of the trial, the jury heard from Jefferson's nephew Zion Carr, who was in the house at the time of the shooting, Carol Darch, an officer who responded to the call with Dean, James Smith, the neighbor who placed a call to the Fort Worth police department's non-emergency line, and multiple crime scene investigators.
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