Good morning and thank you for being here.
We'd like to update you on the progress
of the criminal investigation.
First, I realized that no action we
take can replace the loss suffered here.
I'm deeply sorry for what occurred.
I've received so many contacts from our
officers, we want to express how sorry
they are as well and how this is not
indicative of the work they do every day.
Human life is a precious thing and should
not have been taken from Miss Jefferson.
This incident has eroded the trust
that we have built with our community.
And we must now work even harder
to ensure that trust is restored.
Concerning the status of
the criminal investigation,
at approximately 6:00 PM yesterday,
Aaron Dean was arrested for
the murder of Miss Jefferson.
We obtained an arrest warrant
after enough evidence and facts
were analyzed and verified.
A team of officers quickly affected his
arrest at the office of his of his attorney.
He was booked into the Tarrant County Jail,
where his bond was set by
the presiding magistrate.
He has since posted bond.
We're continuing to work closely
with the Tarrant County criminal
District Attorney's Office to
ensure this entire investigation
is prosecuted in a thorough,
meticulous and solid manner.
To the citizens and the
residents of our city.
We understand your frustration
and disappointment.
I too am frustrated and disappointed by
what occurred and the officer's actions.
We never want an officer's response
to a call to ending the loss of life.
We have a great many officers who
work extremely hard every day and
they do this at great sacrifice.
And with his servants heart.
Ask you to please do not let the
actions of one officers reflect.
On the other 1700.
There's absolutely no
excuse for this incident.
And the person responsible
will be held accountable.
Mr Jefferson's family and our
community will have the last word.
And the courts will speak on her behalf.
Each and everyone of you have our support
and our commitment to serve you better.
We strive to be better everyday
than we were the day before.
My prayer for Tatianna's
family, our community
and our department.
Comes from chapter numbers
Chapter 6 verses 24 and 26.
May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord's face shine upon
you and be gracious to you. The
Lord lift up his countenance
upon you and give you peace.
Take some questions, chief.
The Jefferson family says that they
want reforms and what they see
is a brutal police culture.
Chief, what needs to
change the forward policy? As
a as the city
manager alluded to yesterday,
we're looking at bringing in an
independent third party group to
come in and evaluate our policies,
our practices and our training to ensure
that we are above best practice standards.
I cannot tell you what
what he felt. He did not give a
statement to our investigators.
At the the the gun was
found just inside the room,
but it makes sense that she would
have a gun if she felt that she
was being threatened or there
or someone in the backyard.
Department exactly. Arrested.
They were kind of incident in that
they were, they were Fort Worth
officers and I was not made aware
that there was any any type of
struggle or anything like that.
New light shed on why, if they were
responding to a welfare check,
why did they park around
the corner from the house?
And also why did they not ring
the doorbell or knock on the door?
They believe they were responding
to an open structure call
and not just a welfare check.
My question to that because you you've
made that you said that yesterday,
who determined this neighbor
called and said the doors open.
Obviously who determined, OK,
this is an open structure call versus a
welfare check because as you said yesterday,
those are two different types of responses
by the officer who determined that.
So the information came from the neighbor
to the call takers and then while
it was relayed to the dispatch, it.
It was determined to be
an open structure call.
So I don't know if it,
I can't tell you specifically
if it was a dispatcher,
but that's something we're looking into.
We heard the call from the neighbor
and then from dispatch to correct.
What is procedure for officers
on an open structure?
Is it to go on to the
property and look in Windows?
It's an open structure.
Do you think common sense
would be to knock on a door?
Well, it depends on what the
officers believe at the time.
If they think they the structure
is open due to somebody breaking
in or or something like that,
that would elicit one response.
If they if they think it's just
somebody left their door open,
that would elicit a separate response.
An officer has been prosecuted.
He has not been prosecuted yet.
He has simply been arrested.
There's still a long, long haul off
ahead of us to my knowledge, yes.
How tall is this taken on the
route throughout the department
that officers were still having
to be out in responding to calls
and this has to take the toll?
What steps actual steps are being?
Taken to deal with that.
So the morale, the morale pieces.
I don't have any officers saying this
action should not have been taken
against this individual, this officer.
I'm getting the complete opposite response.
Chief, thank you for
being quick and decisive.
This is going to help heal us.
And the officers are hurting.
I've I've been out there on patrol
and since this occurred and.
It's the officer they they
come up and hug and and.
It's very emotional because the officers,
they try hard every day to
try to make this city better.
I likened it yesterday to some of
our officers that are out there every
weekend and and most weeknights
that that they're out there trying
to build these relationships.
And I likened it to a bunch of
ants building an Ant hill and then
somebody comes with a hose and
washes it away and they just have to
start from scratch and build over.
I think that's going to be
all. Thank you.