Dallas Police Officer Could Face Stiffer Charge For Killing Unarmed Neighbor

According to the CNN’s article that I’ve read, Amber Guyger — a Dallas Police Department’s officer — has committed a manslaughter while she was off-duty, returning back from her shift late. “How everyday racial profiling hurts everyone,” says Amber Guyger, who was already involved in another shooting incident in May 2017, Dallas police said. As claimed by an arrest authorization, when Guyger arrived at her house, she parked her vehicle on the fourth floor. As she walked toward what she thought was her apartment, she realized that the door was slightly open as she tried to use her key. The second she entered the apartment she thought that she had walked in on a robbery. She described the scene as seeing a large shadow and believing there was a burglar in her apartment. This caused her to commit the violence.

As reported by Dallas Police Department, Guyger has mistakenly entered Jean’s apartment without noticing she was on the wrong floor. As stated by the witnesses, Since Jean refused to obey her verbal commands, Guyger fired two shots at Jean, one of which struck him in his chest, costing him his life. Innocent Botham Jean, a 26-year-old native of St. Lucia passed away at a hospital due to the fatal shots. The incident occurred on Thursday night at the South Side Flats in Dallas, where Guyger's apartment is directly beneath Jean's. As she dialled 911 in order to report the situation, they asked for her address, and that was when she realized she was in the wrong apartment.

Even though she had the right to be curious and cautious as a cop, since her shift was over, her reaction is considered to be a violation. She, being a white cop, also brought up the police brutality issue in the United States that is still an enormous problem. The police department in a statement on Saturday announced that the case was handed over to the Texas Rangers, the state law enforcement agency, to eliminate the appearance of any partiality. The continuation of the investigation resulted in investigators obtaining a blood sample from Guyger to test for any sign of drugs and alcohol consumption; the odds are that she was either drunk or high by consuming a particular drug. In his family’s point of view, Jean was always remembered as a loving son, brother, classmate, and colleague; briefly, Jean was a risk assurance experienced associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dallas. He achieved a bachelor's degree from Harding University in Arkansas in 2016. As Crump stated, "He had no criminal history, an amazing student and citizen, being a strong believer, and praised God.” According to CNN, Jean’s acquaintances and family were gathered at the Dallas West Church of Christ on Saturday in mourning of his wasted life. At the funeral, Jean's mother, Allison Jean, mentioned to those who gathered, "Botham never saw color, never saw the race. Botham wanted all of us to unite." S. Lee Merritt, Jean’s family’s attorney, pointed out what co-counsel Benjamin Crump mentioned about police brutality, "We're still dealing in America with black people being killed in some of the most dictatorial ways, driving while black, walking while black and now we have to add living while black.” Botham was considered to be a hard worker and a powerful singer who enjoyed helping others and that he didn’t deserve this ending. Due to the unreasonable violation, Jean's family and their attorneys demand the officer to be taken into custody. What’s more unjust about this scenario, is that Guyger was released from the Kaufman County Jail on Sunday evening after posting a $300,000 bond. As a compensation, she was also fired from the Dallas Police Department. As specified by Attorney S. Lee Merritt, Jean’s family has not been satisfied with the results of the district attorney's decisions, "The promise of transparency to this family has been a blank check.” Losing a family member, especially a close member, excruciatingly affects the family’s mood. In this particular scenario, paying money for this kind of loss is not the remedy.

I know for a fact that eye for an eye is an old and brutal law, but that’s the only way Jean’s family believes they will gain some peace. Due to the Law of Magna Carta, men are supposed to have life, liberty, and property; so just like all of us, black people are also human, and they have the right to live freely in this society without being bothered. May this tragedy be the last tension between cops and the black population in the United States of America.