Amber Guyger now faces a maximum of life in prison after being found guilty of murder for fatally shooting her neighbor Botham Jean.
The 31-year-old former Dallas Police Department officer was in uniform but not on duty when she burst into Jean's apartment, allegedly thinking it was her own. Prosecutors, per NBC News, said Guyger was at fault for "missing several clues" that she was on the wrong floor of the building, including the presence of a red doormat outside Jean's apartment.
Jean—an unarmed black man—was said to be eating ice cream in his living room when the now-former Dallas cop—an armed white woman—entered the apartment and shot him. Guyger's attorneys characterized Jean's death as a "tragic, but innocent" mistake. Last September, Guyger was fired by the Dallas Police Department.
In a press release on Sept. 24 of last year, the Dallas Police Department said their own Internal Affairs investigation had determined that Guyger—who joined the force in November 2013—had "engaged in adverse conduct."
Botham Jean's mother, Allison Jean, notably responded to attempts made by multiple parties to smear her son's name that same month by referring to Guyger as "the devil."
Per footage captured by on-the-ground reporters after Tuesday's jury decision, prosecutors left the courtroom to the sound of applause:
Deliberations began in the Guyger trial Monday, with the jury told that it must decide whether Guyger was guilty of first-degree murder. If she had been found not guilty of the charge, the jury would have considered a manslaughter charge.
