Judge Tammy Kemp said she does not regret her decision to give a Bible and a hug to the former police officer who shot and killed a man after walking into the wrong apartment.
“And I don’t understand the anger,” Kemp said in a Monday interview with the Associated Press. “And I guess I could say if you profess religious beliefs and you are going to follow them, I would hope that they not be situational and limited to one race only.”
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Kemp gave Amber Guyger, 31, a hug and a Bible after the former Dallas police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for fatally shooting Botham Jean, 26.
The move brought condemnation from various groups, including an atheist nonprofit group that filed a complaint against the judge for “proselytizing.”
Kemp said she was trying to help Guyger understand that God could forgive her, even for murder.
“She asked me if I thought that God could forgive her and I said, ‘Yes, God can forgive you and has,'” she said. “If she wanted to start with the Bible, I didn’t want her to go back to the jail and to sink into doubt and self-pity and become bitter.”
Jean’s 18-year-old brother, Brandt, said he forgave Guyger and told her he just wanted the best for her.
“I love you just like anyone else, and I’m not going to hope you rot and die,” he said after the sentencing. “I personally want the best for you. I wasn’t going to say this in front of my family, I don’t even want you to go to jail. I want the best for you because I know that’s exactly what Botham would want for you. Give your life to Christ. I think giving your life to Christ is the best thing Botham would want for you.”
BREAKING: In stunning moment, Botham Jean’s brother embraces Amber Guyger after her sentencing for his brother’s murder.
“I don’t even want you to go to jail. I want the best for you, because I know that’s exactly what Botham would want.” https://t.co/sWaPUtS0kj pic.twitter.com/xPAIKQLh6z
— ABC News (@ABC) October 2, 2019
Kemp said she hugged Guyger after the trial and that such an act was therefore not part of the trial.
“I came down to extend my condolences to the Jean family and to encourage Ms. Guyger because she has a lot of life to live.”
