The Texas House of Representatives passed a bill on Friday, May 14, called the “Botham Jean Act,” that will require an officers’ body-worn camera to be activated for the entirety of an investigation that involves them. The bill is named after Botham Jean, who was shot and killed in 2018 as he sat in his living room eating ice cream.
Former police officer Amber Guyger was convicted of Jean’s murder and claimed she thought she was entering her own apartment when she allegedly mistook Jean for an intruder and took his life. She was sentenced in 2019 to 10 years in prison and is currently appealing her case from behind bars.
“I am thankful that we are continuing to work from a place of bi-partisanship and that we have found a common ground to move Bo’s Law into law in the State of Texas. I also want to thank House Speaker Dade Phelan for his support. In keeping with the spirit of the young man who HB929 was named after, ‘Let the spirit of Botham Jean continue to rise among us,’” the bill’s sponsor, Texas Rep. Carl O. Sherman told The Hill in a statement.
The House voted 108-34 to pass the bill which will head to the state Senate next for approval and then will await the signing of Governor Greg Abbott. The bill was named “929” to honor Jean’s birthday which is Sept. 29, per a request from his mother. Sherman also said the new bill would focus on “systemic accountability” and that it was a “watershed” moment seeing both Republicans and Democrats support the bill. Sherman, whose son is a police officer as well, maintained that the bill was not anti-law enforcement.
“This is not about police versus protesters or citizens, this is really just about trying to make sure that we create an environment for good officers. Good officers want us to do this. They want us to stop allowing shields for bad officers to remain,” he added in an interview with The Dallas Morning News.
