Botham Jean’s Family: Are Dallas Police Smearing His Reputation to Protect Officer Who Killed Him?

https://democracynow.org - Protests continue in Dallas after the shooting and killing of a 26-year-old black man in his own apartment by a white Dallas police officer. Police officer Amber Guyger has been charged with manslaughter after she entered Botham Shem Jean’s apartment about two weeks ago and opened fire, killing him. Police claim she believed it to be her apartment. Questions are growing over why there was a three-day delay in charging Guyger and how she failed to know she was not in her own apartment when she killed Jean. Jean’s family is also criticizing police for issuing and making public information from a search warrant on Jean’s apartment. We speak with Lee Merritt, a civil rights attorney who is representing the family of Botham Jean, and says police are trying to smear Jean to shield their officer from punishment. “It took (Jean) being killed by a Dallas police officer for him to become a criminal,” Merritt notes. Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs weekdays on nearly 1,400 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream 8-9AM ET: https://democracynow.org Please consider supporting independent media by making a donation to Democracy Now! today: https://democracynow.org/donate FOLLOW DEMOCRACY NOW! ONLINE: Facebook:   / democracynow   Twitter:   / democracynow   YouTube:    / democracynow   SoundCloud:   / democracynow   Daily Email: https://democracynow.org/subscribe Google+: https://plus.google.com/+DemocracyNow Instagram:   / democracynow   Tumblr:   / democracynow   Pinterest:   / democracynow   iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/demo... TuneIn: http://tunein.com/radio/Democracy-Now... Stitcher Radio: http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/democ...