Former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was ordered by a civil jury to pay $98 million for using excessive force in the fatal shooting of Botham Jean six years ago. Guyger, who was convicted of murder in 2018 and sentenced to ten years in prison, did not attend the recent trial and did not have a lawyer present. The jury found that Guyger had acted with malice and awarded Jean’s family $60 million in punitive damages, along with an additional $38 million in compensatory damages. Despite the family seeking $54 million, they called the verdict a powerful testament to Jean’s life and the injustice of his death.
The family’s legal team described the case as exposing critical issues of racial bias and police accountability. In the federal complaint filed in 2018, Guyger’s actions were described as clearly excessive and unreasonable. The incident occurred when Guyger returned to the wrong apartment and fatally shot Jean, mistaking him for an intruder. Guyger testified that she never intended to harm an innocent person and expressed regret, emphasizing that it was a result of fear rather than hatred. Guyger is white, while Jean, a Black man from St. Lucia, was the victim of the shooting. The verdict sends a clear message that law enforcement officers who commit crimes will face consequences for their actions, according to Jean’s family and legal team.
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