‘It’s Senseless’: Father of Texas Woman Fatally Shot in Her Home

Samuel Allegri
By Samuel Allegri
October 14, 2019US News
share

The father of Atatiana Jefferson,  a 28-year-old woman who was fatally shot by police in her own home in Fort Worth on Saturday, says he cannot understand why this tragedy happened.

“I mean it’s senseless. My daughter… had her whole life in front of her,” father Marquis Jefferson told CBS News.

Atatiana was shot by a police officer who went to do a welfare check after a neighbor spotted the woman’s front door was open late at night.

Fort Worth Police Department arrived at the woman’s home at 2:25 a.m. and one officer opened fire after seeing a figure at the window, which he perceived as a threat, Fort Worth police said in a statement.

In the released bodycam video, the officer can be seen holding a flashlight and searching outside of the home. He sees something inside the house through a window, shouts “Put your hands up, show me your hands!” and immediately opens fire.

“What the officer observed and why he did not announce police will be addressed as the investigation continues,” Fort Worth Police Lt. Brandon O’Neil said.

The officer is currently on leave.

“Responding officers searched the perimeter of the house and observed a person standing inside the residence near a window,” police said. “Perceiving a threat the officer drew his duty weapon and fired one shot striking the person inside the residence.”

“I don’t want no hug. That’s my one and only daughter. I’ll never forget that,” Jefferson said, reported CBS News.

Police said that there was a gun in Jefferson’s home but it isn’t specified if it was related to the shooting.

Attorney Lee Merritt, who is representing Jefferson’s family, called her “a kind, brilliant soul.”

“Shot and killed in her own home by the Fort Worth Police Department,” Merritt wrote on Facebook. In a separate post, Merritt said “she was very close to her family. She was the auntie that stayed up on Friday night playing video games with her 8-year-old nephew.”

Jefferson’s neighbor, James Smith, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram he called the police after noticing that the doors of her home were open and the lights were on.

“When I saw the doors open, I thought about [the child,] I thought about his grandma, I thought about his aunt,” Smith told the publication. “And I wanted to make sure they were safe. That’s all I wanted to do.”

Epoch Times reporter Tom Ozimek and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

ntd newsletter icon
Sign up for NTD Daily
What you need to know, summarized in one email.
Stay informed with accurate news you can trust.
By registering for the newsletter, you agree to the Privacy Policy.
Comments