Amber Guyger: US ex-cop sentenced to 10 years for murder

Amber Guyger (left) has been convicted of murdering Botham JeanImage copyright
Police handout/ Facebook

Image caption

Amber Guyger (left) said she thought Botham Jean was an intruder in her own apartment

A US former police officer who shot dead her neighbour inside his own apartment in Dallas has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for murder.

Amber Guyger, 31, argued she killed Botham Jean, 26, after mistakenly thinking she was in her own flat and that he was an intruder.

The sentencing hearing included emotional testimony from Jean’s family.

The sentence by a jury was less than the 28 years prosecutors had sought. She faced up to 99 years in prison.

Guyger’s lawyers had argued she was distracted by sexually suggestive texts with another police officer and had just completed a nearly 14 hour shift when she made “a series of horrible mistakes” on the night of 6 September 2018.

  • Police ‘trying to smear’ shooting victim
  • US police shootings: How many die each year?

Prosecutors accused her of bursting into Jean’s apartment “commando-style” and firing at him while he was eating a bowl of ice cream on his sofa.

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionGuyger’s testimony – “I was scared whoever was in my apartment was going to kill me”
source: bbc.com