Memphis
Police Officer Charged With Murder In Wife’s Shooting
A Memphis police officer
charged with second-degree murder for fatally shooting her wife has pleaded not
guilty.
Authorities charged 34-year-old
officer Jaselyn Grant on Wednesday in the death of 29-year-old Keara Crowder.
Police say Grant was also charged with attempted murder because she tried to
shoot Crowder’s 12-year-old son.
Defense attorney Dewun Settle
said after Grant’s arraignment on Thursday that his client “was defending
herself.”
Police said the shooting
occurred during a domestic argument at the home where the women lived.
Investigators said in an affidavit that Grant’s claim of self-defense did not
“corroborate other witness statements or the crime scene.”
Records show that the couple
had a history of domestic violence, with Grant’s “stressful” job as a police
officer possibly playing a role.
“This is a very, very stressful
job,” said Memphis Police Director Toney Armstrong.
“I don’t think being a police
officer exempts you from any of the other pressures of life. We’d hope none of
our members would result in violence, especially to the level this particular
case has,” Armstrong added.
Grant, who resigned from the
Memphis Police Department on Thursday, is currently in jail on a $500,000 bond.