Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Dallas Officer's Frantic 911 Call After Shooting Unarmed Man Obtained
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
May 1, 2019

Share

DALLAS — The former Dallas police officer who fatally shot an unarmed black man in his own home told a 911 dispatcher “I thought it was my apartment” nearly 20 times as she waited for emergency responders to arrive, according to a recording of the call obtained by a Dallas TV station.
“I’m an off-duty officer. I thought I was in my apartment and I shot a guy thinking he was, thinking it was my apartment,” Amber Guyger said in the Sept. 6 recording obtained by WFAA .

Officer Faces Charges in Killing

Guyger, who is white, is charged in the killing of Botham Jean and is set to go to trial later this year. She has said she entered Jean’s apartment, thinking it was her own, and fatally shot him. The department fired her in the weeks following the shooting.
On the call, Guyger can be heard apologizing to Jean, who was a 26-year-old native of the Caribbean island of St. Lucia who worked in Dallas for an accounting and consulting firm.
WFAA hasn’t said how it obtained the recording.
Dallas police did not authorize the audio’s release and the department has opened an internal affairs investigation into the matter, said Senior Cpl. Melinda Gutierrez. The department again declined to provide the recording to The Associated Press in response to a public records request, saying Tuesday it is exempt as part of an ongoing criminal case. A spokeswoman for the Dallas County District Attorney’s office and one of Guyger’s lawyers, Toby Shook, declined to comment, citing a judge’s gag order in the case.

Frantic Six-Minute 911 Call

Guyger sounds frantic during the nearly six-minute call, saying “I’m gonna lose my job” and “I am going to need a supervisor.” At one point, she seems to question how she ended up in Jean’s apartment and says, “I’m so tired.” The call ends as police officers arrive and Guyger tells them, “No, it’s me. I’m off duty, I’m off duty.”
Attorney Daryl Washington, who is representing Jean’s family, noted that Guyger did not tell the operator she was afraid of Jean or that she thought he was an intruder.
“There was nothing in that video or the recording where she ever indicated she thought Botham was trying to harm her,” Washington told WFAA. “She was very fast to shoot without asking very many questions.”
Lawyers unconnected to the case say that the 911 recording could be potent trial evidence that Guyger genuinely believed she was in her own apartment, but that alone is not exculpatory.

Finding Impartial Jury Could be Difficult

Prosecutors will grill Guyger on how and why she mistook Jean’s fourth floor apartment for her own on the third floor, said Heath Harris, a criminal defense lawyer and former first assistant district attorney for Dallas County. Guyger’s defense will largely hang on whether she can persuade a jury that it was a reasonable mistake, he said.
“This is going to all come down to the jury selection,” said Harris. “She’s going to have to testify and make that jury believe her.”
The intense public attention on Guyger’s case might create difficulty finding impartial jurors in Dallas. But the release of the 911 recording is not, unto itself, reason for a venue change, said John Helms, a Texas criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor.
In lower profile cases it’s not uncommon for 911 calls to become public before trial. And with so much media coverage of Guyger’s case those paying closest attention will likely hear what they want in the recording, Helms said.
“I don’t know how many minds it’s going to change because most people who are interested have already formed an opinion,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s going to change public opinion.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Republicans’ Trust in Media Increases Following Trump’s Return to White House

DON'T MISS

Jeanine Pirro to Be Interim US Attorney for DC, Trump Says

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Catch Fleeing Gang Member Who Tossed Gun Over Fence

DON'T MISS

Suit Challenges New Rules on Children in Federal Custody Who Crossed Into US

DON'T MISS

Fresno Mayor Dyer Bullish on Growth, Calls on Newsom for $200 Million

DON'T MISS

Rejoicing Peruvians See Pope Leo XIV as One of Their Own After His Many Years in Peru

DON'T MISS

FEMA’s Acting Administrator Is Replaced a Day After Congressional Testimony

DON'T MISS

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un Leads Missile Test, Stresses Nuclear Force Readiness, KCNA Says

DON'T MISS

Shohei Ohtani Could Have Landed 15-Year Deal, Agent Says, but He Didn’t Want to Risk Skills Decline

DON'T MISS

White House Overhaul of Troubled US Air Traffic Control System Will Cost ‘Lots of Billions’

UP NEXT

Rejoicing Peruvians See Pope Leo XIV as One of Their Own After His Many Years in Peru

UP NEXT

Shohei Ohtani Could Have Landed 15-Year Deal, Agent Says, but He Didn’t Want to Risk Skills Decline

UP NEXT

Joe Biden Blames Kamala Harris’ Loss on Sexism and Racism and Rejects Concerns About His Age

UP NEXT

Before Tariff Price Increases, Mark Cuban Suggests Stocking Up on These Items

UP NEXT

He Was Killed in a Road Rage Shooting. AI Allowed Him to Deliver His Own Victim Impact Statement

UP NEXT

More Older Americans Worry Social Security Won’t Be There for Them

UP NEXT

Sen. John Fetterman Raises Alarms With Outburst at Meeting With Union Officials

UP NEXT

Special Report: At Social Security, These Are the Days of the Living Dead

UP NEXT

Video: Raccoon With Meth Pipe in Its Mouth Discovered During a Routine Traffic Stop in Ohio

UP NEXT

What Customers Can Expect as Rite Aid Closes or Sells All Its Drugstores

Suit Challenges New Rules on Children in Federal Custody Who Crossed Into US

14 hours ago

Fresno Mayor Dyer Bullish on Growth, Calls on Newsom for $200 Million

14 hours ago

Rejoicing Peruvians See Pope Leo XIV as One of Their Own After His Many Years in Peru

14 hours ago

FEMA’s Acting Administrator Is Replaced a Day After Congressional Testimony

14 hours ago

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un Leads Missile Test, Stresses Nuclear Force Readiness, KCNA Says

14 hours ago

Shohei Ohtani Could Have Landed 15-Year Deal, Agent Says, but He Didn’t Want to Risk Skills Decline

14 hours ago

White House Overhaul of Troubled US Air Traffic Control System Will Cost ‘Lots of Billions’

14 hours ago

US Military to Start Kicking out Transgender Troops Next Month, Memo Says

14 hours ago

Los Angeles Coliseum and SoFi Stadium to Share Opening and Closing Ceremonies for 2028 Olympics

15 hours ago

Jennifer Aniston’s Alleged Stalker Appears in Court Shirtless and a Judge Orders a Mental Evaluation

15 hours ago

Republicans’ Trust in Media Increases Following Trump’s Return to White House

Americans’ trust in news organizations and social media has increased since last year, with Republicans driving this shift following T...

13 hours ago

https://www.communitymedical.org/thecause?utm_source=Misfit+Digital&utm_medium=GVWire+Banner+Ads&utm_campaign=Branding+2025&utm_content=thecause
13 hours ago

Republicans’ Trust in Media Increases Following Trump’s Return to White House

Fox News Channel host Jeanine Pirro and other members of the news media work outside the Manhattan Criminal Court building during the 2nd day of jury deliberations in former U.S. President Donald Trump’s criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, in New York City, U.S. May 30, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar
13 hours ago

Jeanine Pirro to Be Interim US Attorney for DC, Trump Says

Fresno police arrested a known gang member who ran from officers and tossed a gun over a fence in southeast Fresno. (Fresno PD)
13 hours ago

Fresno Police Catch Fleeing Gang Member Who Tossed Gun Over Fence

14 hours ago

Suit Challenges New Rules on Children in Federal Custody Who Crossed Into US

14 hours ago

Fresno Mayor Dyer Bullish on Growth, Calls on Newsom for $200 Million

14 hours ago

Rejoicing Peruvians See Pope Leo XIV as One of Their Own After His Many Years in Peru

14 hours ago

FEMA’s Acting Administrator Is Replaced a Day After Congressional Testimony

A handout photo shows missiles being launched, in North Korea, May 8, 2025. KCNA via REUTERS
14 hours ago

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un Leads Missile Test, Stresses Nuclear Force Readiness, KCNA Says

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend