Fort Worth police chief breaks silence on Aaron Dean trial and death of Atatiana Jefferson in one-on-one interview

Chief Neil Noakes talks about fighting crime, his police advisory board, diversity and what he would say to Atatiana Jefferson’s nephew Zion Carr.

FORT WORTH, Texas. Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes celebrates two years as the city’s chief police officer.

He had to face months of difficult situations, some of which he inherited with his promotion. His two years were filled with shooting by officers, incident after incident, which caused him to fire officers for misconduct; the high-profile murder trial of a former Fort Worth officer charged with fatal shooting; and clashes over a public advisory board that oversees the activities of the police, where he personally selected people for service.

After weeks of requests to meet, the boss met with WFAA’s Scoop Jefferson for an exclusive one-on-one interview. During the interview, Noakes spoke candidly about how she is working desperately to reposition the department in the eyes of the people they are sworn to protect and serve.

“We want society to trust us. We want the community to know that we are not trying to hide anything,” Noakes said.

Death of Atatiana Jefferson

For the first time since the conviction of former FWPD officer Aaron Dean, the chief has broken his silence on the shooting of Atatiana Jefferson in 2019.

Noakes is among those ordered to remain silent pending the presiding judge’s verdict in the murder of former Fort Worth officer Dean.

Dean was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

Two months after her conviction, the boss revealed what she would say to Zion Carr, Jefferson’s nephew, who was with her when Dean killed her. He is the only witness to the shooting, he was only 8 years old at the time. Carr testified during the trial.

“First I would hug him,” Noakes said. – The first thing I would do. He is a wonderful young man, he has been through a lot, and also recently experienced a tragedy.”

Carr’s mother, Amber Carr, died a few weeks after the sentencing. She had congestive heart failure.

Noakes said: “I would tell him I love him. We don’t want him to be afraid of us. We want him to know that we are always there for him. We are sorry about what happened. We are very sorry that he had to face this.”

Officer Misconduct

As head, Noakes fired 16 of the 33 officers he punished for their behavior.

Two of these officers were reinstated after arbitration.

“No one hates a bad cop more than a good officer,” Noakes said. “There are certain behaviors that have no justification.”

Under Noakes, the department releases video of the shooting. The videos, however, are edited.

When asked why, Noakes gave the following explanation: “Sometimes there are things that need to be protected, whether it be a citizen whose identity needs to be protected. We must protect our witnesses to make sure they are not in danger.”

Community Advisory Board

During a recent presentation at the Fort Worth City Council, FWPD assistant chief Robert Aldredge shared that the chief’s plan is to reduce violent crime by 10 percent over the next 12 months. This includes violent crime involving youth in Fort Worth. Noakes recently reacted to a fatal shooting scene outside a fast food restaurant near Fort Worth High School involving teenagers.

“I’m angry, a young man, a high school student, has no reason to lose his life at a young age,” Noakes said.

Noakes shared that transparency is his goal for the Fort Worth police.

When city council members rejected the idea of ​​a Police Community Board of Supervisors, Noakes presented his community advisory board to the council, with a diverse list of people he had hired to serve on that board.

However, after his presentation at a public council meeting in the city hall center, several council members rejected his plan and said that such a council should remain independent of the police in order to hold the department accountable.

“It is impossible to materialize everything about the government until it meets. I want the board to be involved in determining that the community should have a say in how it should be.”

Noakes also wants the racial makeup of the Fort Worth Police Department and its command staff to reflect the city. He admits that this is far from the past.

“Look at old photos of the Fort Worth Police Department. What are you going to see? You will see a lot of professional white men who come out and do their job as best as they can. Noakes. “There was no variety.”

After becoming chief police officer, Noakes appointed Monica Martin, the first African-American woman in the Fort Worth Police Department, and Jason Kim, the first Asian-American division commander.

But even with the changes and accountability standards Noakes has introduced, she shares that when it comes to restoring public trust, they have a lot of work to do, especially after the fallout from Atatiana Jefferson’s death.

“We’ve been building relationships with the community, earning the trust of the community and creating opportunities for interaction, and that’s been great. Then it was like someone came in with a hose and washed it all out,” Noakes said. “We are doing everything we can to maintain legitimacy, trust and respect.”

The police chief remains optimistic and believes in the restoration of relations between the police and the public in Fort Worth. He has problems not only from the community, but also within his own department, forcing hundreds of officers to see the same goals for the future.

“I have to set that vision,” Noakes said.

Thank you for reading News Press Ohio

The post Fort Worth police chief breaks silence on Aaron Dean trial and death of Atatiana Jefferson in one-on-one interview

first appeared on Texas Standard News.

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