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Home • News

Trial Begins For Former Dallas Cop Who Killed Botham Jean In His Own Apartment

Amber Guyger, who was indicted on a murder charge last year after killing Botham Jean, faces up to life in prison if convicted.
City Of Dallas Dismissed From Civil Lawsuit In Botham Jean's Murder, Family To Appeal
By Breanna Edwards · Updated October 23, 2020
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The trial of Amber Guyger, the former Dallas police officer who shot and killed Botham Jean in his own apartment, is scheduled to begin on Monday, CNN reports.

The beginning of the trial comes a little over a year since the Sept. 6 shooting death, which resulted in Guyger being charged with murder.

Guyger had claimed that she believed she was entering her own apartment when she saw a “large silhouette” that she thought was an intruder, prompting her to fire the fatal shots.

Guyger had in fact entered the wrong apartment on the wrong floor after getting off of her shift at the Dallas Police Department, and walked into Jean’s unit, where he was home alone.

As CNN notes, the shooting prompted days of protests across Dallas as activists called for justice.

Guyger was fired from the Dallas Police Department in the fallout after the shooting.

Guyger, who pleaded not guilty, faces up to life in prison if convicted.

With the trial unfolding, Jean’s family is hoping for such a conviction, so some semblance of justice can be had in their loved one’s untimely death.

“My hope for the trial is for my son to get justice … that the person who inflicted harm on him gets punished for the crime that she committed,” Allison Jean, Botham’s mother, said.

The family spent the anniversary of the shooting promoting good deeds in Jean’s native St. Lucia. His family there went to his elementary school to donate school supplies and award scholarships to two children, according to CNN.

“We’re always taught to ask God for exactly what you want, so this is what I want: I want justice for Botham,” Botham’s sister, Allisa Findley, 37, who lives in New York told the network.

TOPICS:  Amber Guyger Black Lives Matter Botham Jean Botham Shem Jean police accountability Police Brutality