Councilman Chris Nettles is sponsoring a proposal on tonight’s Fort Worth City Council agenda to rename the Hillside Rec Center after Jefferson, who was killed a block away in her mother's home by a former Fort Worth police officer.
But some residents from that neighborhood say it’s a bad move. They say that rec center means a lot to the entire neighborhood and has a rich history.
“She was visiting from Dallas, Texas, babysitting her nephew and that’s when the incident happened,” said Marcus E. Graves, a Hillside neighborhood resident. “Just because it happened across the street from the Hillside Rec Center, I really don’t think the entire rec center should be named after her.”
Graves leads a group of neighborhood residents who think a better approach is a plaque explaining what happened to Jefferson, and leaving the Hillside rec center's name as is.
“The Councilman never discussed this with anybody that’s a part of the neighborhood, whom himself is not a part of that neighborhood,” said Graves. “So for you to just say ‘here I’m just going to rename the rec center to Atatiana Jefferson Rec Center, it just does not sit well at all.”
A member of Nettles staff promised a response later this afternoon.
Jefferson was babysitting her nephew in her mother’s home when a neighbor noticed the front door was open in the early morning hours of Oct. 12, 2019. Officer Aaron Dean was dispatched to check. Dean testified he was able to look inside the house, thought it had been burglarized, and went around back with another officer.
Jefferson’s nephew said she heard a noise outside and got a gun. Dean said he shot Jefferson when she pointed the gun at her. He never identified himself as an officer.
A jury found the use of lethal force was not necessary, convicted Dean of manslaughter and sentenced him to nearly 12-years in prison.
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