Oblivious to the bright red doormat in front of Botham Jean’s apartment, Dallas police officer Amber Guyner slid the key into the door and let herself into the dark apartment, thinking she had stepped into her own apartment.
She then spotted a “figure in the darkness” and fired twice, killing the man in his own apartment after believing him to be a burglar, a law enforcement officer told the Dallas Morning News.
Police are now saying Jean “ignored verbal commands” from Guyner, which is why she shot him, according to an arrest affidavit released Monday.
Sources have told Dallas reporter J.D. Miles that these verbal commands were for Jean to show his hands which he refused to do – which she was able to see despite it being so dark she could not tell she was not in her apartment.
It was only after she turned on the lights and stepped outside where she read the apartment on the side of the door that she realized she had walked into the fourth floor apartment, the one directly above her unit.
But by then, it was too late because Jean was already dying, his young life cut short by a badged intruder whom he believed would keep him safe; a man described by everybody as warm, friendly, genuine, caring and trusting.
Police say Guyner drove up to the fourth floor parking level instead of the third where she was supposed to park after working a 15-hour shift.
From there, she continued walking toward’s Jean’s apartment where the layout is identical, leading to her confusion.
Police also say Jean left his door unlocked, which was how Guyger was able to enter.
And sources told Miles that she did not see the red carpet because she was carrying bags – which did not keep her from pulling out her gun and kill Jean.
“I thought it was my apartment,” she told a 911 dispatcher before turning to Jean and saying, “I’m so sorry.”
Police arrived in four minutes and rolled him out on a gurney with one of them pumping his chest and he was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The latest narrative about what took place Thursday night is a complete contradiction to what police were saying last week.
“A Dallas police officer, who spoke with NBC 5 under the condition of anonymity, said Guyger was assigned to the department’s elite Crime Response Team and had just finished a 14-hour shift serving warrants in high-crime areas. When she arrived home, she took the elevator to a floor that was not hers. She then went to what she thought was her door, put the key in and struggled with the lock. Guyger then put down several things she was holding and continued to fight with the key when the resident swung open the door and startled her. Guyger believed Jean, who was wearing only underwear, was an intruder and shot him with her service weapon. It wasn’t until police and rescue units began arriving that she realized she was not at her apartment. Once realizing her deadly mistake, she became emotional and fully cooperated with officers, including offering to provide blood samples.”
Police say Guyner had moved into the South Side Flats a month ago because it was right down the street from the police department where she worked and that the two did not know each other.
She was arrested Sunday night on manslaughter charges on a $300,000 bond but quickly bonded out.
UPDATE: We have received two audio clips of the dispatch communications from the Dallas Police Department following the shooting.
Communication begins at the 25 minute mark in this clip, then continues on this clip.
