Amber Guyger murder trial gets underway Monday in Dallas

DALLAS - Former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger goes on trial for murder Monday – one year after the death of Botham Jean in his own apartment.

Both sides will lay out their case in opening statements at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Downtown Dallas. The jury will have to decide if what Guyger did was murder or something else.

She shot and killed Jean in his own apartment last year at the Southside Flats in Dallas.

Guyger had just finished a shift at the Dallas Police Department and was still in uniform when she claims she mistook his apartment for her own and thought he was a burglar.

Guyger was initially arrested and charged with manslaughter but a grand jury indicted her for murder in November.

Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot maintains that is the appropriate charge.

“It seemed to me that people were misinterpreting the facts of the case and what they meant legally. So this issue of manslaughter, that it was manslaughter, I wrote no. This is more appropriately a murder case based on the facts as reported,” he said. “I’ve studied what we have and I feel comfortable that we’re going forward on it. But I don’t have any idea how it will end up.”

Judge Tammy Kemp denied the defense team’s request to have the trial moved out of Dallas County because of what attorneys called prejudicial and inflammatory media coverage.

There is a gag order in place, preventing attorneys on either side from commenting publically on the case.

This week Jean’s family is expected to testify, along with expert witnesses who will discuss police use of force.

FOX 4 News will cover the trial on air, online and on social media. CLICK HERE for an archive of stories related to the case.

Visit fox4news.com throughout the day or FOX 4 News on Facebook for a live stream. Reporters at the courthouse will also be sharing live updates on Twitter.