Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger killed Botham Shem Jean in his own apartment claiming she thought it was hers.
Demand that Amber Guyger is charged with murder.
Dear friend,
Amber Guyger, a white female officer, killed 26-year-old Botham Shem Jean, a Black man, in his home. She claims that she mistook his apartment for her own and thought he was intruding.1 But her story isn't adding up and his family is demanding answers and accountability.
Amber's story keeps changing. At first, she said that the door to Botham's apartment was locked. Now she's telling investigators that she yelled at Botham to show his hands after she walked into HIS apartment.2 However, the attorney representing Botham's family has received witness accounts from neighbors saying that they heard "knocking down the hallway followed by a woman's voice that they believe to be officer Guyger saying, 'Let me in. Let me in.'"3 So many questions remain unanswered and Amber Guyger is only getting more time to re-work her story. We need answers and transparency now.
Despite being off-duty at the time, Amber Guyger is STILL being given special treatment because she's a police officer-- she wasn't arrested until days after killing Botham.4 Any other person, especially if they were Black, would have been arrested immediately and charged with home invasion and murder. The Dallas Police Department insisted that this shooting wouldn't be treated as an officer-involved shooting, but this is looking all-too-familiar. Guyger was released immediately after her arrest. She's free. And she's still on Dallas Police Department payroll.
Dallas District Attorney, Faith Johnson, is in charge of this case and has the power to make the final decision on the charges that Amber will face for killing Botham.5 In a press statement, she alluded to the inadequacy of manslaughter charges and said, "The grand jury will decide if the charges should be different. Believe me, we will make sure justice is done in this case." So we need to turn the pressure up on DA Johnson and make sure she keeps her promise by ensuring Amber Guyger is charged with murder and that the Dallas Police Department gets Amber Guyger off the force.
Botham Jean's family and community are devastated by his senseless death. Botham was a young man with promise and dreams. In college, he was active in his student government and various other student groups. Members of his community and neighbors described Botham as a good person through and through.6 His life was cut short simply because he was Black. This weekend Botham's family traveled to Dallas from St. Lucia, where Botham was born, to get answers from the police department about the murder of their 26-year-old child.7 Everything about this situation is heartbreaking and wrong.
When police kill Black people they almost always get away with it and are protected under the "blue code of silence."And this is no different. Sunday evening, Amber was finally arrested however she was quickly freed on a $300,000 bail and she continues to be employed by the Dallas PD on "administrative leave." 8 Meanwhile, the police department has kept quiet on any details about what really happened. And we've had to rely on social media for any possible information.
Despite Amber's short stint with the Dallas Police Department, only working for the department for four years, this is not the first time that she has shot someone. In 2017, Amber shot 47-year-old Uvaldo Perez in the stomach while arresting him. She received no disciplinary action for this.9 Amber is just one example of a police officer who was still allowed to remain on the police force despite an obviously dangerous history of violence.
Botham's family met with DA Johnson this weekend and they still don't know the details of their son's murder. And still, today, after the DA's press conference Botham's mother said : "I've been told there are no answers yet."10 Botham was killed on Thursday--his family deserves answers now. This is why we must work to hold officers accountable--and District Attorneys, who are elected by the people, have the power to do this. If District Attorney Faith Johnson does her job and ensures Guyger is charged with murder, it would not only provide Botham's family with some form of justice, it would also send a message to the Dallas Police Department, and all police departments, that cops will no longer be able to kill Black people without consequences.
Until justice is real,
Clarise, Rashad, Arisha, Scott, Kristen, Anay, Marena, and the rest of the Color Of Change team
References :
1. "Dallas police officer arrested days after she killed a man in his own apartment", The Washington Post, 10 September 2018.
2. "Was the door locked or unlocked? Dallas Police Officer who shot Botham Jean reportedly changed her story", Newsone.com, 10 September 2018.
3. "Witnesses dispute Dallas cop's account in fatal shooting of neighbor, attorney says", CBS News, 11 September 2018.
4. "Dallas police officer arrested days after she killed a man in his own apartment", The Washington Post, 10 September 2018.
5. "Grand jury to probe Dallas police officer shooting of neighbor: Prosecutors", U.S News, 10 September 2018.
6. "Botham Shem Jean: 5 facts you need to know", Heavy.com, 10 September 2018.
7. "Dallas police officer arrested days after she killed a man in his own apartment", The Washington Post, 10 September 2018.
8. "Dallas police officer arrested days after she killed a man in his own apartment", The Washington Post, 10 September 2018.
9. "Dallas officer who shot a man in his own apartment was involved in 2017 shooting of a suspect", Dallas News, 9 September 2018.
10. "'I've been told there are no answers,' Botham Jean's mother says as officials promise transparency", Dallas News, 10 September 2018.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Help keep our movement strong.
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