Problem
At 10.00 P.M. on September 6, 2018, Botham Shem Jean, 26, was in his Dallas apartment watching football. A police officer named Amber Guyser entered his apartment, drew he service pistol, and shot Jean. He was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Guyser immediately called the Dallas Police Department, her employer, to report what happened. Guyger was off duty at the time, and Jean was not suspected of any crime. Guyger lived in the same apartment building as Jean and, according to her, she accidentally went into the wrong apartment. Suspecting Jean was in her apartment illegally, she shot him. Dallas County prosecutors promptly convened a grand jury that returned a murder indictment against Guyser. It was not considered an officer- involved shooting because of her off duty status. Guyger was to be charged as an ordinary citizen. She was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The Guyger case raised a number of interesting questions for criminal law. At least three possible defenses would seem to apply. One of them, law enforcement, would seem relevant, but Guyser was not on duty. Another, mistake of fact, seems particularly relevant, as Gurger claimed she was mistaken as to the apartment she entered. The there is the question of self-defense. She argued, thinking her apartment was being burglarized, that shooting Jean was justifable. However, there is an assumption that someone clalming self-defense has a right to be on the premises. Arguably that was not the case with Guyger. Ultimately, none of these defenses were successful given the murder conviction
Task
Should Guyser have been found guilty of murder? Was her sentence appropriate? Why or why not?