Amber Guyger eligible for parole five years after murder conviction – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

It has been more than six years since Botham Jean was shot and killed in his Dallas apartment. The former Dallas police officer convicted of murder was paroled on Sunday.

Amber Guyger is halfway through her ten-year prison sentence. Her eligibility for parole falls on the same day Jean would have turned 33.

“His birthdays are always hard, but today is extremely hard because Amber Guyger is also eligible for parole,” said Jean's sister, Allisa Charles-Findley.

At the time of Jean's death, Guyger was a Dallas police officer. She had just gotten off work and was still in uniform as she headed home to her apartment in the South Side Flats, a building two blocks from Dallas Police Headquarters on the street that now bears her name after the victim.

When Guyger opened the door to her apartment, she saw a man inside and shot him. Guyger lived one floor below Botham Jean and testified at her trial that she mistook his apartment for hers and fired in self-defense.

Jean was an accountant and a Dallas Cowboys fan.

“I tried my best to persuade Botham to move to New York, but he loved Dallas,” his sister said.

A jury convicted Guyger of murder and sentenced her to 10 years in prison. After five years in prison, she faces parole, which Charles-Findley and her family reject.

“She’s only been here for five years and we still have a lifetime without Botham,” she said.

Charles-Findley and Jean's immediate family, including Jean's parents and brother, expect to be interviewed by the Texas Parole Board soon.

Jean's sister, other relatives and friends wrote letters opposing Guyger's release.

“Even if she is granted parole for taking the life of a 26-year-old young man who was just lying on the couch eating ice cream and watching football, that says a lot about our justice system,” Charles-Findley said.

As they wait for a decision, Jean's sister said her family is praying for the strength to deal with whatever the justice system throws at them. She said the parole board could make a decision sometime next month.

Guyger's attorney did not respond to requests for comment from NBC 5 or The Dallas Morning News.

The Dallas County District Attorney's Office said it sent a letter to the parole board protesting Guyger's parole.