Family of Botham Jean holds press conference after Dallas police officer arrested for manslaughter

Sep 10, 2018

 

The family of Botham Jean gathered on Monday in Dallas to call for clarity and demand answers in the shooting death of the 26-year-old in his own apartment by a police officer.

—Amber Guyger, Dallas police officer who shot and killed Botham Jean in his apartment, charged with manslaughter—

Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was arrested on Sunday and charged with manslaughter for killing Jean last Thursday, but questions remain about the questionable circumstances which led the 30-year-old cop to Jean’s door.

Both investigators and Jean’s family are still trying to determine exactly what happened the night of the shooting. Guyger told investigators that she mistook Jean’s apartment for her own and shot him because she was startled by his presence.

Guyger had reportedly just finished a 15-hour shift and still in uniform when she said she parked on the wrong floor and entered Jean’s apartment, which had an unlocked the door and lights turned off, according to a source that spoke to the Dallas News.

Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall announced over the weekend that the investigation was being led by the Texas Rangers to avoid any perceived bias by her department.

—Utah Republican Rep. Mia Love’s campaign admits to improperly raising primary election funds—

Earlier in the week, a Dallas councilman, Philip T. Kingston for District 14, wrote on Facebook that he called for an investigation since Guyger’s story wasn’t adding up. And as community members and the victim’s family called for the officer’s arrest. Kingston said it was because there was infighting between the Dallas Police Department and the Texas Rangers.

Botham Shem Jean was a 26-year-old native of St. Lucia who worked at Pricewaterhouse Cooper.

“The number one answer that I want is what happened,” Allison Jean, Botham’s mother, said to Dallas News today. “I’ve been told that there are no answers yet.”

The family reportedly met with the district attorney’s office over the weekend and left unsatisfied, the family’s attorney Lee Merritt said.

“His killer was known to the district attorney at the time, and that person was able to leave Botham’s home, return to her home and not face any consequences for three days,” Merritt challenged.

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