Dr. Allison Jean, reflecting on the judgement in a civil matter involving the fatal shooting of her son, Botham Jean, has called on law enforcement officers to exercise due caution while on and off duty.
Her unarmed son was shot and killed by former Dallas cop Amber Guyger while in his apartment.
Guyger claimed that she mistook Botham’s apartment for hers, thought the twenty-six-year-old accountant was an intruder, and shot him.
Last week, a United States Federal jury ordered her to pay the Jean family $98.6 million in a civil trial.
Dr. Allison Jean says all life is precious and should be protected. “People who are in law enforcement really have to be careful about how they approach these cases so that they do not just callously take the life of another. I respect law enforcement and I think they have a great work to do in the community in Saint Lucia in the United States,” she said during a post-judgment interview.
She adds that the trend of unlawful police killings needs to stop, highlighting the loss of many innocent lives. “But the trend that we were seeing over the last few years of police officers just brutally going in and shooting at people and you know taking people’s lives, there needs to be accountability for the actions of everyone including the police.”
In Saint Lucia, local calls are also being made for more police accountability as the outcome of many inquests remains outstanding.
In October 2024, Acting Commissioner Garde disclosed that he had spoken with DPP Daasrean Green with a view of pursuing further lines of inquiry into the shooting deaths of 6 individuals: Reginald Jean, killed on February 28th, 2011; Kevin Ferdinand, Rosarius Marquis, Jean Batiste McFarlane, Mitchell Cadet, and Allan Louisy, all killed on May 5th 2011.
“There’s additional evidence we might have accrued and although these matters had already gone through an inquest, it is my intention to liaise with the Office of the Attorney General to reopen the matter in the level of an inquest. This is after I received the formal file on the 14th,” explained Acting COP Garde on October 9th, 2024.
Another pressing matter for the Saint Lucian public is the unresolved death of Shakadan Daniel, who was found unresponsive while in police custody at the Micoud Police Station in 2013.
“I have had some conversation with the investigator and the matter, in my opinion, also needs to be serviced via an inquest and I will again send it through that process in that regard. I want to say though that there are some difficulties with that matter that I have instructed the investigator to manage in the process of the investigation and by the 14th I should have the file at my desk and be in a better position to report on that matter,” Acting COP Garde had said back in October.
