The trial’s opening statements are scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Monday.
FORT WORTH, Texas — A jury of eight males and 6 ladies has been selected for the trial of former Fort Worth officer Aaron Dean, who’s charged with homicide in the 2019 taking pictures demise of Atatiana Jefferson.
No Black jurors had been selected for the case, which in 2019 sparked protests from the Black group over the killing of Jefferson, a Black lady.
A majority of the selected are white; a number of jurors are individuals of colour, although none are Black.
Twelve jurors will sit for the trial, with two selected as alternates.
Opening statements in the trial are scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Monday.
The 200 potential jurors had been randomly numbered. After dozens of potential jurors had been excused both as a result of they’d conflicts at dwelling or work or as a result of they informed the court docket they had been biased or the decide deemed them to be biased based mostly on their solutions, the potential jury pool was “shuffled,” that means they got new random numbers.
The jurors had been then picked in numerical order from that remaining pool.
Sources with data of the jury choice course of stated the jury was in the end picked from the primary 46 potential jurors. Among that group, there was a Black feminine who was excused from jury service as a result of her partner was having surgical procedure.
The decide gave either side the chance to problem of the jury members that had been picked, and neither aspect had any objections.
The last day of jury choice adopted every week of questionnaires and voir dire.
Judge George Gallagher began Thursday by speaking to the potential jurors about their duty to be honest and neutral and what their obligation can be as soon as they take an oath to serve on the jury.
“We need you to be open and honest with us today. There are no right or wrong answers. We need 12 impartial jurors and two alternates who can come in with no preconceived notions,” stated Gallagher.
Aaron Dean is accused of taking pictures Atatiana Jefferson in October 2019 in her dwelling. Jefferson’s neighbor, James Smith, referred to as a non-emergency quantity to verify on Jefferson’s dwelling after he noticed an open door.
Dean and his associate responded and went across the again of the house. Dean shot Jefferson inside seconds after she peered out the window to see who was in her yard and was holding a gun. Police have stated Dean by no means introduced himself as an officer.
During jury choice this week, prosecutors allowed potential jurors to ask questions and speak about how they felt about legislation enforcement.
Several jurors stood up and stated they may not be neutral and had been biased towards Dean as a result of he’s a police officer.
“I am sick and tired about the way police officers are treated and how they do their jobs,” one juror said. “You could present your case but I am not going to be unbiased. I couldn’t convict any law enforcement of murder while involved in a shooting because they are doing their jobs and trying to come home to their families.”
One potential juror served 32 years as an officer in Tarrant County and stated, “You will have an uphill battle convincing me that 10 seconds you can get into his mind and see what he saw and heard.”
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