On Thursday, September 6th, Botham Shem Jean was shot dead in his apartment by Amber Guyger, an off-duty Dallas police officer. According to a police statement, after her shift at the Dallas Police Department, Guyger walked into Jean’s apartment, thinking that it was hers. The door was open before she walked inside, and it was so dark that all she could see was a silhouette of a man. She tried to speak to him but was ignored. She assumed her house was being robbed so she shot Jean twice and called 911. Jean was taken to a nearby hospital where he died. 

Jean’s family, along with their civil rights lawyer, Lee Meritt, do not believe Guyger’s story. According to Meritt, there is a lack of evidence, and there are also witnesses who claim to have heard the officer knocking on Jean’s door and saying “Let me in” before gunshots were fired. Jean’s death has caused people to protest police brutality in front of the Dallas Police Department.   

 Guyger was arrested on Sunday but was released later that night on a $300,000 bail. She is currently facing manslaughter charges.