Amber Guyger, Ex-Officer Who Killed Man In His Apartment, Given 10 Years In Prison

Amber Guyger, a former Dallas police officer who killed her unarmed black neighbor after stepping into his apartment and mistaking it for her own, has been sentenced to 10 years in state prison by the same jury that convicted her of murder.

"Your sentence will begin today," Judge Tammy Kemp told Guyger.

Guyger, who is white, fatally shot 26-year-old Botham Jean, an accountant from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, who was watching television and eating a bowl of ice cream last year when Guyger fired two shots, striking him once in the chest.

She could have faced life in prison, but prosecutors asked for a prison sentence of 28 years, a higher penalty than what the jury imposed.

After the punishment was announced, the courtroom scene took a surprising turn.

Brandt Jean, Botham Jean's brother, stepped to the witness stand to deliver a victim-impact statement and offered forgiveness, citing his Christian faith.