Dallas police officer convicted of murder for killing black man in his own home

Botham Jean
A person carrying a wreath of flowers walks through the parking lot at the Greenville Avenue Church of Christ for Botham Jean's funeral service on Sept. 13, 2018. Photo: Stewart F. House/Getty Images

Fired Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was found guilty of murder on Tuesday for shooting Botham Jean, an unarmed African American man, in his own apartment while she was off duty, the Dallas Mornings News reports.

Why it matters: The shooting on Sept. 9 of last year was highlighted as another case of police using excessive and fatal force against African Americans. Guyger claimed to have mistakenly thought she was in her own apartment and that Jean was a home invader. She was fired by the police department in the weeks thereafter, following an initial manslaughter charge.