Watching The Cops
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Title: Dallas Police Officer Who Walked into Wrong Apartment and Killed Neighbor Found Guilty of Murder
Source:
Townhall
URL Source: https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattv ... ound-guilty-of-murder-n2553985
Published: Oct 1, 2019
Author: Matt Vespa
Post Date: 2019-10-01 15:45:49 by Tooconservative
Keywords: None
Views: 15055
Comments: 31
The former officer, Amber R. Guyger, who is white, was charged in the death of her 26-year-old neighbor, Botham Shem Jean, after she said she accidentally went to the wrong floor of their apartment complex, entered the unit directly above hers and fatally shot him last year. Ms. Guyger claimed she thought she was entering her own apartment and was acting in self-defense against an intruder. […] The shooting and its aftermath in September 2018 ignited protests and calls for justice, with demonstrations outside Police Headquarters and inside City Hall. At a time when other police officers have been cleared of wrongdoing in the deaths of unarmed black men, Ms. Guyger was arrested several days after the shooting on a charge of manslaughter, then released from jail the same day. After weeks of community tensions and accusations of preferential treatment for the police, a grand jury came back with the charge of murder. […] Though the issue of race was not mentioned explicitly in the courtroom, the trial unfolded against the backdrop of a diverse city that is 24 percent black, 29 percent white and 42 percent nonwhite Hispanic. The mayor of Dallas, the police chief and the Dallas County district attorney are all black, as is the judge presiding over this case. Of the 12 jurors and four alternates, seven are African-American, four appear to be white and five are of other races and ethnicities. […] Ms. Guyger testified that she was returning home from a long day of work when she accidentally parked on the wrong floor of the complex’s garage. As Ms. Guyger walked down the fourth-floor hallway, she said, she did not notice that anything was amiss, including the red doormat outside Mr. Jean’s door. The door strike plate was defective and not fully latched closed, according to the defense, allowing Ms. Guyger to enter using her own keys. When Ms. Guyger saw someone inside, she said, she drew her gun and shouted, “Let me see your hands.” She testified that Mr. Jean was walking toward her and shouting “Hey” when she fired her weapon twice, striking Mr. Jean once in the torso and killing him. Again, highlighting things that weren't even brought up at the trial because the Left is obsessed with race. And this ridiculous news alert is quite different from the Times' actual headline: "Amber Guyger, Former Dallas Police Officer, Found Guilty of Murder in Death of Neighbor." Now, with that aside, there are some things about this whole case that doesn't really make sense concerning Guyger. She's going to jail and it seems as of now it's very much deserved. Poster Comment: Okay, copsuckers, take a deep breath and swallow it all the way to the base. ... And that is the taste of criminally reckless police getting the same taste of justice they hand out to the public every day. I like that her teary I-am-a-victim-of-that-Negro-ice-cream-gobbler just didn't impress the jury.
Former Dallas police officer Amber R. Guyger thought she had entered her own apartment. It wasn’t. Instead, she shot and killed her neighbor, which sparked national headlines. Guyger is white. Her neighbor and victim, Botham Shem Jean, was black. Guyger said she felt threatened and acted in self-defense. The jury rejected that argument and Guyger now faces 5 to 99 years in prison. There is no evidence that Guyger had any racial motivations concerning this horrible event. Yet, here’s The New York Times trying to stoke up racial tensions, which is juxtaposed with their own reporting that race was never really mentioned during the trial, though decided to add that drama in there because…why not make an already tense situation worse (via NYT): 
A former Dallas police officer who shot her unarmed black neighbor in his own apartment was found guilty of murder on Tuesday, in an unusual and high-profile case that dealt with issues of race, policing and mistaken identity.
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#1. To: Tooconservative (#0)
I bet she will be real popular on Cell Block C, especially with the tan klan !
They will house her in a special prison. I think she should have been charged, and found guilty. However the most appropriate criminal charge should have been Manslaughter. recklessly causing the death of another person. My opinion is not swayed by her profession... but by her acts.
#4. To: GrandIsland (#2)
(Edited)
Let's all hope not. She'll be a real popularity queen in the TX prison system!
Murder and homicide charges do vary by state as we all know. And sometimes what we call murder in one state is a homicide in another or manslaughter or wrongful death in another. Since she is convicted and can be sentenced for 5-99 years, it sounds like what most states would call second-degree murder. The most serious charge is always first-degree murder and involves premeditated murder and intent to murder someone, generally with some malice or a profit motive. In an earlier thread with a FNC article, we learned that the jury could have convicted her of 3 different charges. The jury will have to decide whether Guyger committed murder, a lesser offense such as manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide, or no crime at all. So the jury had a range of charges to consider. They chose the most serious one so we can be pretty sure they were unanimous on this and that no juror tried to hold out for manslaughter. We all can recall those cases where one or two jurors held out for a lesser charge and prevailed over the rest of the jury. Her profession probably did hurt her. She chose to serve and took an oath to execute her duties as a peace officer to enforce public safety laws. There can be no doubt the public would have been safer if she hadn't been given a badge. I think the jury took that out on her. A civilian walking through the wrong door because they were sexting their fellow-worker might have gotten a lesser charge. She was likely held to a higher standard because she was a cop. It could also be the case that her defense team said things that made the jury angry, trying to get her acquitted.
But she was a trained cop and her actions were intentional. She pulled her gun, aimed it, shot for effect and hit her intended target. She intended to kill or down the person she shot at. That's a cold reading of the law, but it seems to apply. She probably didn't realize she was in the wrong apartment, but being spaced out and reacting is not reckless. It's a tough one to call. Texas has capital murder and murder. The do not have degrees as elsewhere. Manslaughter is as you describe. I posted the statutes on another thread here. She can produce mitigating factors at the sentencing phase.
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#2. To: Stoner (#1)
Replies to Comment # 2. They will house her in a special prison.
#5. To: GrandIsland (#2)
(Edited)
However the most appropriate criminal charge should have been Manslaughter. recklessly causing the death of another person.
Three days after the shooting, Guyger was arrested for manslaughter. She was subsequently fired from the Dallas Police Department and charged by a grand jury. My opinion is not swayed by her profession... but by her acts.
#20. To: GrandIsland, Stoner (#2)
I think she should have been charged, and found guilty. However the most appropriate criminal charge should have been Manslaughter. Recklessly causing the death of another person.
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