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Officer indicted on murder charge for killing unarmed man in his home

Botham Jean's family
Botham Jean's family after his funeral. Photo: Stewart F. House/Getty Images

Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was indicted on a murder charge by a grand jury for shooting Botham Jean, an unarmed African American man, in his apartment while she was off duty, the Dallas Morning News reports.

Why it matters: Jean's shooting was highlighted as another case of police using excessive and fatal force against African Americans.

The backdrop: Guyger shot Jean on Sept. 9. She claimed to have mistakenly thought it was her own apartment and thought he was a home invader. Guyger was fired by the police department in the following weeks after initially being charged with manslaughter.

What to watch: It remains to be seen whether Guyger will be convicted. If she is, it'll be one of the rare occasions where a police shooting has resulted in a conviction, as it's rare for officers to be charged and convicted, the Chicago Sun Times reports.

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