Amber Guyger Trial: First Day Of Trial For Fired Dallas Officer Accused Of Murdering Apartment Neighbor Botham Jean
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - The trial of former Dallas officer Amber Guyger begins Monday as she is accused of murdering her neighbor, Botham Jean, in his apartment, claiming she thought he was an intruder in her unit.
It's a trial people around the nation have been waiting for since the Sept. 6, 2018 shooting. Guyger was captured walking into the Frank Crowley Courts Building Monday morning ahead of the start of the trial.
In a trial that's expected to last at least two weeks, a jury will decide if Guyger committed murder when she shot and killed Jean.
After the shooting took place, the former Dallas officer told investigators she mistook Jean for an intruder after she walked into his apartment thinking it was her own.
She had first turned herself in two days after the shooting on a charge of manslaughter and was later fired by Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall. On November 30, 2018, a grand jury indicted Guyger for murder.
More then 220 people received subpoenas for the trial, but not all will be called to testify. They include Chief Hall and former Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson, who was in office when Guyger was indicted for murder.
Jean, a native of St. Lucia, graduated from Harding University in Arkansas in 2016. His parents are in Dallas from St. Lucia for the trial and could take the stand.
Seventy of the those served with subpoenas are Dallas police employees and include officers who responded to the scene of the shooting and detectives who investigated the case. Instructors with the Dallas Police Academy could also testify on the training Guyger received.
Another dozen who were served are residents and employees of the South Side Flats apartment complex where Guyger and Jean lived.
On Sept. 14, 12 jurors were selected along with four alternates.
Opening statements are expected to happen Monday morning to get the trial underway.
