When an unidentified, off-duty Dallas police officer spotted a Black man inside the apartment she mistook as her own home on Thursday night, she pulled the trigger and fatally shot the unarmed 26-year-old.
During Friday afternoon’s press conference, Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall said the officer was “returning to what she believed to be her apartment after finishing her shift,” according to BuzzFeed News.
“It’s not clear what [the] interaction was between them,” Hall said. “At some point, she fired her weapon, striking the victim.”
He added: “Right now there are more questions than we have answers. We are working as vigorously and as meticulously as we can to ensure the integrity of this case.”
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Victim Botham Jean was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
BuzzFeed News also reports that a “blood sample was taken from the officer to determine if drugs or alcohol were in her system.”
The Texas Rangers are also investigating the incident, according to the outlet.
“Initial indications were that we were dealing with an officer-involved shooting, however, as we continued the investigation it became clear that we were dealing with what appears to be much of a very unique situation,” Hall said.
A native of the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia, Jean graduated from Harding University in Arkansas in 2016. The university provided a moving statement via its Facebook page on Friday morning:
“The entire Harding family grieves today for the loss of Botham, who has meant so very much to us,” the statement read. “Please join us in praying for Botham’s friends and family and for all who were touched by his extraordinary life.”
