Update: A Texas jury has found Amber Guyger guilty of murder for fatally shooting Botham Jean in his apartment last year. She faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
This story was originally published on November 30, 2018.
A former Dallas police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black man in his home has been indicted on a charge of murder.
The officer, Amber Guyger, was off-duty and in uniform on September 6 when she encountered Jean in the apartment complex where they both lived. In an arrest warrant affidavit, Guyger explained that when she opened the door to what she thought was her own apartment she saw the figure of a man and fired two shots. She claims it was only when she turned on the lights and dialed 911 that she realized she had mistakenly entered Botham Jean’s apartment instead of her own residence. Jean died from his wounds.
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Guyger was arrested on September 9 and later fired from the Dallas Police Department.
Jean’s family, who filed a suit against the Dallas PD, said that Guyger had a history of violence and that she used excessive force on the night of the killing. They had hoped she would be indicted on murder charges.
In Dallas today, a grand jury indicted former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger for murder in the September shooting death of Botham Jean. @FaithJohnsonDA announced the indictment alongside Jean’s family. pic.twitter.com/t9SrcMAMms
— Christopher Connelly (@hithisischris) November 30, 2018