Downtown march protests black man’s police shooting in his own apartment

DALLAS; 15 Sep2018; (AP): Dozens of demonstrators marched through the streets of downtown Dallas and briefly blocked the westbound lanes of Interstate 30 to protest a white police officer’s fatal shooting of a black man in his own apartment.

The march, which appeared to be peaceful, began with a rally outside Dallas police headquarters Friday evening. Demonstrators marched to the interstate, where they chanted “Shut it down!” before moving through downtown streets chanting slogans such as “Justice now!” along with the name of Botham Jean, the man shot to death in his apartment on Sept. 6.

No arrests have been reported.

Officer Amber Guyger is charged with manslaughter in the shooting and is free on bond. She has told investigators that she mistook Jean’s apartment for her own, which is one floor below Jean’s.

The mother of a man killed in his own apartment by a white Dallas police officer has expressed disgust that reports have surfaced indicating that investigators found a small amount of marijuana in her son’s home.

Allison Jean, the mother of 26-year-old Botham Jean, said Friday that her son’s name was smeared by reports that police found 10.4 grams of marijuana in his apartment.

She also says she wants to see the toxicology report for off-duty officer Amber Guyger, who said she mistook Botham Jean’s apartment for her own and shot him when he didn’t obey her verbal commands.

A family attorney says a police search warrant request shows that investigators were looking for information that would “assassinate” Botham Jean’s character.