Former police officer gets 10 years for killing neighbor

In a Friday, Sept. 27, 2019, file pool photo, fired Dallas police officer Amber Guyger becomes emotional as she testifies in her murder trial in Dallas. Guyger, who said she fatally shot her unarmed, black neighbor after mistaking his apartment for her own was found guilty of murder on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. A jury reached the verdict in the high-profile trial for the killing of Botham Jean after six days of witness testimony but just a handful of hours of deliberation. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via AP, Pool, File)

Fired Dallas police officer Amber Guyger leaves the courtroom after a jury found her guilty of murder Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019, in Dallas. Guyger shot and killed Botham Jean, an unarmed 26-year-old neighbor in his own apartment last year. She told police she thought his apartment was her own and that he was an intruder. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via AP, Pool)

This Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019, booking photo provided by the Dallas County Sheriff's Department shows former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger. Guyger, who shot her black unarmed neighbor Botham Jean to death after, she said, mistaking his apartment for her own, was convicted of murder Tuesday. (Dallas County Sheriff's Department via AP)

Botham Jean's mother, Allison Jean, cries while speaking about her son during sentencing testimony for former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger in 204th District Court at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. Guyger, who shot her black unarmed neighbor Botham Jean to death after, she said, mistaking his apartment for her own, was convicted of murder Tuesday. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via AP, Pool)

FILE - In this Sept. 21, 2017, file photo, provided by Harding University in Searcy, Ark., Botham Jean leads worship at a university presidential reception in Dallas. Fired Dallas police Officer Amber Guyger, who shot and killed Botham Jean, an unarmed 26-year-old neighbor in his own apartment last year, was found guilty of murder by a jury on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. She told police she thought his apartment was her own and that he was an intruder.(Jeff Montgomery/Harding University via AP, File)

Fired Dallas police officer Amber Guyger, left, sits alone as attorneys from both sides meet with Judge Tammy Kemp after a jury found Guyger guilty of murder Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019, in Dallas. Guyger shot and killed Botham Jean, an unarmed 26-year-old neighbor in his own apartment last year. She told police she thought his apartment was her own and that he was an intruder. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via AP, Pool)

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By Jake Bleiberg The Associated Press

October 2, 2019 - 4:31 am

Updated October 2, 2019 - 2:14 pm

DALLAS — A white Dallas police officer has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for fatally shooting her unarmed, black neighbor in his home.

The jury sentenced Amber Guyger on Wednesday. Guyger was convicted of murder Tuesday in the September 2018 killing of her upstairs neighbor, Botham Jean.

In Texas, a murder sentence can range from five years to life in prison, but the judge also instructed jurors on a so-called sudden passion defense, which carries a range of 2-20 years behind bars.

Guyger was still dressed in her police uniform after a long shift when she shot Jean, a 26-year-old accountant from the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia. She was fired from the force and charged with murder.

Guyger testified that she mistook Jean’s apartment for her own, which was one floor below, and that she thought he was a burglar in her home.

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