Former Cop Who Killed Botham Jean Eligible for Parole on His 33rd Birthday
Whether by a sick twist of fate or cruelty, while the late Botham Jean’s family was left to celebrate his 33rd birthday on Sunday in his absence, the former Dallas Police officer who killed him, Amber Guyuger, became eligible for parole on the same day — Sept. 29 — according to records from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Guyger shot and killed Jean on his own couch on September 6, 2018 after she claimed she thought he was inside her apartment. Guyger said she had finished a 13-hour patrol shift when she walked into Jean’s Dallas apartment, found him eating vanilla ice cream in front of the TV and shot him. She was convicted of the 26-year-old’s murder and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2019 according to WFAA.
"She’s caused my family tremendous, tremendous hurt, tremendous pain,” Allison Jean, Botham's mother, told CBS News. “She ought to remain where she is.”
As of right now, it’s unclear whether Guyger will go before a parole board. Former parole officer and University of Texas Arlington professor Zerita Hall told CBS News that letters from Jean’s family would be considered. Hall also said Guyger may not meet face to face with a board; they may solely review her paperwork.
Guyger has appealed her conviction but was denied in 2022. If she served her full sentence, she would be released from prison Sept. 29, 2029 — again, the same day as Jean’s birthday.
