Amber Guyger the murderer of Jean Botham who was violently shot in his Dallas apartment on Sept. 6 2018 could have gotten a 99-year to life imprisonment without the option of parole after implicating text messages were discovered that further damaged her defense. But in an act of forgiveness by the victim’s brother in his testimony Brandt Jean said he forgave the 31 year old ex-Dallas police officer which may or may not have swayed the jury’s decision and got Amber’s sentence reduced to just 10 years.
The white former Dallas police officer shot and killed her unarmed neigbhour and on Wednesday was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. In a trial dramatic trial which spotlighted issues of racial injustice, police accountability and the extraordinary capacity of a victim’s family to forgive a perpetrator.
The sentence didn’t sit well with all as expected as almost immediately the sentence was met with protest.
In the hallway outside the courtroom, Jean family supporters called the punishment “a slap in the face,” as prosecutors had asked for a sentence no less than 28 years — the age Jean would be if he were still alive.
In a twist of events, something rather strange was happening in the court Jean’s younger brother — described by his family as suffering the most after the shooting — spoke directly to Guyger. He urged her to pray, he forgave her and he asked permission to give her a hug.
“I love you as a person and I don’t wish anything bad on you,” Brandt Jean told Guyger from the stand.
Then, as their families watched, the ex-officer and the brother of the man she killed met in the front of the room and held each other in a long embrace. They were both in tears, and sobs could be heard in the courtroom.
Legal experts said Guyger’s lack of a criminal record and her career in public service may have played a role in the punishment.
“I would imagine with her being a police officer, even though they found her guilty, there would probably be some individuals on the jury who might be sympathetic to her,” said Kenneth Williams, a professor at South Texas College of Law in Houston.
In a post on Twitter, where “Only 10” was among the most talked about phrases Wednesday night, Jean family lawyer Lee Merritt said the sentence was indicative of a broken system, one in which institutional racism is the rule and people of color are treated unjustly.
“Of course that’s inadequate,” Merritt wrote. “The entire justice system is inadequate and the work must continue.”
“We all were robbed of Botham and the greatness that he brought to Dallas County,” one prosecutor said. “But honestly, who knows what his impact could truly have been had his life not been taken from him.”