Dallas street to be named after police shooting victim Botham Jean

Jean was shot in his home in 2018. The officer was convicted of murder.

March 26, 2021, 3:52 PM

A Dallas street is set to be renamed in honor of Botham Jean, an unarmed Black man who was eating ice cream in his unlocked apartment when a police officer entered and fatally shot him.

The officer, Amber Guyger, claimed she fired in self defense, saying she mistook 26-year-old Jean's apartment for her own when returning from work on Sept. 6, 2018.

Jean's mother, Allison Jean, told reporters on Friday: "He was full of life. He was full of energy, vigor. His quest was to see that the world became a better place."

PHOTO: Botham Jean's mother, Allison Jean, speaks at a press conference about the renaming of a street in her son's honor in Dallas, March 26, 2021.
Botham Jean's mother, Allison Jean, speaks at a press conference about the renaming of a street in her son's honor in Dallas, March 26, 2021. A street is set to be renamed in honor of Botham Jean, an unarmed Black man who was eating ice cream in his unlocked apartment when a police officer entered and fatally shot him.
WFAA
PHOTO: A demonstrator holds a sign for Botham Jean while marching during a demonstration, June 9, 2020, in Revere, Mass., for George Floyd and other Black Americans killed at the hands of law enforcement.
A demonstrator holds a sign with a photo of Botham Jean while marching during a demonstration, June 9, 2020, in Revere, Mass., for George Floyd and other Black Americans killed at the hands of law enforcement. Botham Jean was shot by police officer Amber Guyger in his own Dallas apartment after the officer mistook the apartment for her own.
Erin Clark/The Boston Globe via Getty Images, FILE

"He reached out to the underprivileged. He cried tears when he drove me around Dallas and showed me the homeless people," she said. "He wished he could've taken every homeless person in."

"And," she added, "he gets killed in the sanctuary of his home."

The renaming ceremony for Botham Jean Boulevard, scheduled for Saturday, ensures that "his memory lasts forever," his mother said. "Every single Dallas police officer has to say his name."

PHOTO: A mural depicts the late Botham Jean and a street sign with his name on it, March 26, 2021, in Dallas.
A mural depicts the late Botham Jean and a street sign with his name on it, March 26, 2021, in Dallas. A street is set to be renamed in honor of Botham Jean, an unarmed Black man who was eating ice cream in his unlocked apartment when a police officer entered and fatally shot him.
WFAA

Guyger was convicted of murder in 2019 and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

PHOTO: Fired Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger listens as her attorneys make arguments during her murder trial, Sept. 23, 2019, in Dallas. Guyger went on trial in the shooting death of Botham Jean.
Fired Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger listens as her attorneys make arguments during her murder trial, Sept. 23, 2019, in Dallas. Guyger went on trial in the shooting death of Botham Jean, a black neighbor, when she mistook the neighbor's apartment for her own.
Dallas Morning News via AP, FILE

Though Allison Jean is glad to see a street named in honor of her son, she stressed, "It doesn't fix the problem."

"Her 10 years is still not enough," she said.