A Dallas County judge has delayed a ruling for a change of venue request in the Amber Guyger trial. Guyger is the former Dallas police officer accused of murder after she fatally shot a man in his apartment which she believed was her own.
Judge Tammy Kemp stated that a decision on the change of venue request by the defendant should not be considered until after jury selection is attempted in Dallas County.
That jury selection is scheduled to begin next month.
Attorneys representing Guyger ask for a change of venue saying she cannot receive a fair and impartial trial in Dallas County.
Guyger, 30, is accused of fatally shooting Botham Jean inside his own apartment on Sept. 6, 2018. She was charged with manslaughter three days later, before a grand jury heard evidence and opted to instead indict her on a murder charge. Guyger claimed she mistook his apartment for her's (she lived in the same complex, though on a different floor) and thought he was an intruder. He was unarmed.
Guyger's team of attorneys, Toby Shook, Robert Rogers and Michael Mowla, said the Dallas County jury pool has been "poisoned" by pretrial publicity and a "false narrative" that race motivated the shooting. The defense team asked that the trial be moved to another court in the same judicial district in which Dallas County is located, specifically to one of the following counties: Collin, Grayson, Kaufman, Ellis, Rockwall or Fannin.
It is not clear if the trial will be moved or, if approved, which court will hear the case. If the request is denied, and if Guyger is convicted, it's possible her attorneys could then base an appeal off their belief that she couldn't receive a fair trial in Dallas County.
