Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger Arrested & Charged With Manslaughter After Killing Innocent Man
Amber Guyger was arrested Sunday night and charged with manslaughter in connection with the shooting death of Botham Shem Jean.
As previously reported by Inquisitr, Guyger, a white police officer, was off-duty when she entered Jean’s apartment after her shift was over at around 10 p.m. on Thursday. She lives in the same apartment complex as Jean and supposedly thought that she was entering her unit. She encountered Jean in his apartment, shot, and killed him.
After the shooting, Guyger was placed on administrative leave and investigation into the incident was turned over to the Texas Rangers. Dallas Police originally did not identify Guyger as the officer in the incident, but she was named earlier today and a warrant was issued for her arrest.
CNN reports that Guyger has been arrested. She was released from the Kaufman County Jail on Sunday evening after posting a $300,000 bond.
Jean was a 26-year-old black man that worked for accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. He was a native of St. Lucia, and his family demanded that Guyger be arrested in connection with the shooting. The family’s attorney, S. Lee Merrit, issued a statement on Sunday.
“We don’t need evidence beyond a reasonable doubt at this point. At this point, we need probable cause of a crime. And the existence of probable cause is painstakingly clear to everyone.”
Texas Rangers arrest DPD officer Amber Guyger – @CNN pic.twitter.com/jHDrWnqNx9
— AnneClaire Stapleton (@AnneClaireCNN) September 10, 2018
Co-counsel Benjamin Crump also issued a statement. “We’re still dealing in America with black people being killed in the most arbitrary ways, driving while black, walking while black and now we have to add living while black,” co-counsel Benjamin Crump said.
Merritt said attorneys have presented prosecutors with a witness and video evidence.
Dallas News reports that Jean moved to Texas after graduating from Harding University in 2016. His mother, Allison Jean, was a government official in St. Lucia. Jean began working for PricewaterhouseCoopers in downtown Dallas after his move. The embassy of St. Lucia has issued a statement of condolences, noting that “to have such a promising life taken so violently is just devastating.”
Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings has commented on Jean’s promising career, stating that Dallas has lost “a potential leader for this city for years to come. Everybody recognizes that this is a tragedy.”
Jean was in leadership positions at Harding University, and led worship sessions and mentored a men’s group. He was known for his activism and community work in both St. Lucia and the U.S.
