Most of the time we even wish and pray very much that a message simply turns out to be wrong, that it never happened, and was probably a joke. But even more, than we would expect good news at any time, we find the unpleasant news trapped between them. Such is life, some may conclude, while others lament how cruel it is. But the fate of the young, successful businessman Botham Jean, who hung in his apartment where he met his untimely death, would make much think, is that it?
In the end, those who blame the cruel hands of fate cannot be blamed, especially the people of Jean, whose treasure was stolen when they least expected it. The alleged attempt by the police to defile his reputation by staging a search of his house is also considered the height of injustice. Nevertheless, we should not draw conclusions yet. Here is what we know about Botham Jean, life, and death.
Botham Jean Biography
He was born sometime in 1992 in the capital Castries on the eastern Caribbean island of Saint Lucia and named Bothan Shem Jean. After successfully completing high school, he moved to the United States where he attended Harding University, a private Christian school in Searcy, Arkansas. He later became a naturalized US citizen.
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In Harding, Botham, affectionately known as Bo, he served as a worship leader and assistant and was also a member of the Good News Singers, an a cappella group that performs spiritual songs for churches. In 2016 he graduated with a degree in accounting and management information systems. According to his Facebook profile, Bo also attended Sir Arthur Lewis Community College and St. Mary’s College.
After graduating, he moved to Dallas and worked as a Risk Assurance Associate for the Dallas-based accounting and consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. He was also a successful businessman. Bo was known for his outgoing personality and magnetic leadership skills, and as such he led several youth organizations and enjoyed helping others. He was a vibrant and active youth member of the Dallas West Church of Christ.
His life was suddenly snuffed out like a candle in the wind, and his dreams, which included becoming Prime Minister of St. Lucia, were obliterated forever with the bang and smoke from an off-duty officer’s pistol in an unimaginable tragedy on September 6, 2018. He was shot and killed by a Dallas police officer, identified as Amber Rene Guyger, in the shelter he called home, who said she confused his apartment with hers.
Family – Parents, Siblings
Botham was born as the middle child of Bertram Jean and Allison Jean. His father was a business supervisor at Water and Sewerage Company Inc. known as WASCO, while his mother is a former Secretary of State at the Department of Education, Innovation, Gender Relations, and Sustainable Development.
His siblings include an older sister, Allisa Charles-Findley, and a younger brother, Brandt Jean. Botham’s uncle is Ignatius Jean, the CEO of the Caribbean Water and Sewerage Association Inc. (CAWASA), as well as the former government minister and parliamentarian and Earl Jean, who played professional soccer in Europe and on the island’s national team.
They participated in various platforms to express their sadness. Botham’s sister posted on Facebook that one week before his death she was no longer thinking about a birthday present, what to buy, but that she will now go and get his coffin. His mother wished that the whole event would turn out to be a nightmare from which she could wake up. She called Botham her heart, her soul, and everything else.
Was Botham Jean Married? Wife or Girlfriend
He was not married and left no known girlfriend behind. There were rumors that the deceased knew the officer who shot him and had a relationship with him. However, his family put an end to the rumor by stating that their son and brother neither knew the said officer nor had any relationship with him. The family still does not know what actually happened that night.
Although the circumstances of Botham Jean’s death would not make sense to either parent, Allison Jean does not judge the officer. As a Christian, she reenacted what she had learned and lived – forgiveness – but hoped that justice would take its full course.
Botham Jean Death: Here’s What We Know
The murder of Botham Jean in his own apartment has attracted worldwide attention. The fact that he is an innocent black man killed by a white policeman has exacerbated the problem. The tragedy was an appeal to advocates against police brutality against blacks, although it is not known whether race played a role in Botham Jean’s death.
The unfortunate accident occurred on the night of September 6, 2018, in South Side Flats, Dallas.
Officer Mistook His Apartment For Hers
Guyger, 30, who has been in police service for 4 years and worked on patrol, returned from work shortly before 10 pm after a shift. She parked her car on the fourth floor, although her apartment was on the third floor, walked down the hall, and went into Jean’s apartment, thinking it was her own. She tried to use her keyring with an electronic chip to open the apartment but found that it was already open and unlit.
Then she saw the large silhouette across the room, though it was a burglar, and opened fire. She fired her handgun twice after Jean allegedly ignored her orders and punched him in the chest once. She killed her neighbor, the man who actually lived there. Then Guyger turned on the light and saw the apartment number on the front door: 1478, with hers directly below Jean’s, and called 911. He was transported to Baylor Hospital, where he died.
Reactions Following the Killing
He was a rarity and will be remembered as one who is highly respected by all. Whether by family members, work colleagues, neighbors, or former classmates, he is described as a positive, friendly person whose life and successes had just begun. His death was denounced by religious leaders, social media users, and activists in Dallas and across the country.
He also sparked protests and outrage and became a focal point in an ongoing national conversation on race and law enforcement issues. Other issues and questions were also raised, including why Guyger was arrested and charged three days after the murder. Many felt that this could only indicate that the police had given preferential treatment to one of their own.
She was charged with manslaughter but was released on $300,000 bail, although Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson said she would take the case to a grand jury.
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Inconsistencies in the Reports
There are also inconsistencies between Guyger’s claim that he accidentally entered the wrong apartment, confronted Jean, who she thought was a burglar, and opened fire, and the evidence, according to Lee Merritt, a Dallas civil rights lawyer representing Jean’s family. In testimony, two of the neighbors testified that they heard the officer knock on the door before the shooting and repeatedly say, “Let me in.
Police Cover-up
While Guyger is on administrative leave, Jean’s family and many others demand that she be released. To further fuel the already raging fire, the police decided to issue a search warrant for Jean’s apartment to look for evidence of drug paraphernalia. Because of this act, which his mother described as worse than the phone call she received about her son’s death when she tried to present him as a criminal, the family criticized the police, while Merritt pointed out that the search warrant fits a “known pattern” that police have seen in police shootings of black victims, linking blacks to crime.
Among other things, two fired cartridge cases, 10.4 grams of marijuana, and a marijuana grinder, which was allegedly found in Jean’s apartment, were confiscated according to a police affidavit. Although the arrest warrant does not specify who the items belong to, these questions remain: What was their intent in the search? To murder his character next to his corpse and make it look like the officer was just doing her job – tracking down criminals or could there be another motive? Only those affected can say that.
As much as one hopes that Botham will not only become a statistic in the rising number of murders in the nation and that justice will take its full course, one should also take note of the impact of the incident on the police officer. It could be that two lives were destroyed that night: that of the killed and that of the unintentional murderer.
However, the attention is given to explaining how she ended up in the wrong apartment and the details of her report have only added to the concern and frustration that after years of unsuccessful demands for police accountability, she could end up as another police officer who goes unpunished for a fatal shooting.