The outcome inside the courtroom for former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean and the angry emotions outside were anticipated by some watching the case closely.
"So, I was not surprised,” said Bob Ray Sanders, the former co-chair of Fort Worth's Task Force on Race and Culture. “But I was also not surprised that many in the community were upset by the verdict. That's going to be a lingering thing here in Fort Worth."
"In many respects, this is a win for the community because they got a guilty verdict for what they consider to be an egregious crime," said Sanders, who is a long-time Fort Worth resident.
But at the same time, he knows this isn't what many people wanted to see for the shooting death of Atatiana Jefferson. He says the community has a right to be angry.
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"You can be upset all you want,” Sanders said. “You can be upset as anybody in the world. But let's not be crazy over this. Let's figure this out and come up with other ideas on how we move forward instead of backward again."
"I'm hoping that we can keep the peace, but I don't know,” Sanders said. “This city is still one incident away from major eruption."
Sanders said there is a way for the city to move forward in a positive way toward healing.
"The mayor has got to be involved in that,” Sanders said. “Those city council members have to be involved in that. The chief has to get on board with that. The chief of police. But we need from our community the leadership to rise to what I know they can do. But they've got to do it."
Sanders is looked at by some as a community advocate and said he will continue doing his part in the fight for what's right.
"I want what's best for the city, but I also want justice and I'm going to keep fighting for that regardless," Sanders said.
