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Lee Merritt tells 6 Information how the household is dealing with the trial, what he wish to see occur in court docket and calls on Texans to be invested within the trial.
BELL COUNTY, Texas — A civil rights legal professional representing the household of Michael Dean, a Temple man who was fatally shot by a Temple Police officer in 2019, spoke to six Information after day three of the jury trial for Carmen DeCruz.
Legal professional Lee Merritt answered questions from native media shops Wednesday afternoon. He wasn’t capable of touch upon proof within the trial as he stated the prosecutors workplace instructed him out of an abundance of warning that he should not get into particulars to guard the case.
Merritt did focus on how the household and associates of Michael Dean are doing as info involves mild after years of ready.
“The household won’t ever absolutely get well,” he defined. “Michael Dean’s minor youngsters won’t ever absolutely get well from and that’s actually demonstrating within the courtroom — issues that you do not suppose would set them off. His brother’s an enormous powerful military man, veteran, and he was in tears subsequent to me in the course of the trial, the place they had been describing Michael, clenching the fist of an officer whereas they had been performing life saving measures.”
Household and associates of Dean have been sitting in on the trial each day listening to testimony. Nonetheless, Merritt stated they’ve chosen to step out and never watch any of the physique digital camera footage of the moments they misplaced their beloved one.
“Trial course of is a really sterile course of, however for the household that is all very uncooked,” Merritt defined. “This incident, simply the expertise for the household needs to be one of the vital bewildering experiences you possibly can think about and Michael Dean was taken from them three years in the past. His physique was lacking for nearly every week. They weren’t giving any narrative as to what really occurred to him.”
At this level within the trial, physique digital camera footage from former Temple Police Officer Carmen DeCruz has been proven within the courtroom as soon as. Merritt would love it to be proven repeatedly as that’s what he believes is finest for the case.
“I believe that that is what we’re right here in regards to the whether or not or not he was justified or not throughout that second is the vital piece of proof advert I’ve seen prosecutors be extra profitable after they make it some extent to spotlight a very powerful piece of proof within the case,” the civil rights legal professional stated. “I have not seen that executed sufficient right here. We have seen a number of supplemental movies, that the primary video was proven as soon as. I wish to see that going over with the consultants, with using drive consultants, and the standard of using drive consultants and the digital camera consultants that they bring about in goes to be crucial within the subsequent couple of days.”
Merritt additionally needed character witnesses of Dean to take to face to have the ability to humanize him, not simply victimize him to the jury.
The civil rights legal professional did focus on what he believes the protection will attempt to pull in trial within the coming days, which he described as ‘ridiculous.’
“The Protection leans actually closely, usually for legislation enforcement officers, it has been my expertise that they leaned very closely on their responsibility,” Merritt added. “You realize, Carmen DeCruz did not get up that morning and say he desires to go discover somebody to kill however he had an obligation to serve the folks of Temple they usually need to act like that this sort of conduct, this sort of policing is normal policing and he was retaining us all protected as a result of none of us need to see somebody going 10 miles over the velocity restrict within the Metropolis of Temple. I believe it is a ridiculous protection. He is additionally going to should say that he feared for his life.”
Because the Dean household waits for justice and accountability, Merritt desires to remind those that DeCruz’s trial has a a lot bigger attain than his inside circle.
“This trial is a very powerful factor that is taking place within the nation proper now,” Merritt stated. “The neighborhood ought to actually dig in. The end result on this case will decide the protection of far too many Texans, not solely black Texans, disproportionately black and brown Texans, however for each Texan.”
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