Botham Jean | Used Courtesy of: The Botham Jean Foundation
Following the recent parole of former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger, the family of Botham Jean has issued an official statement clarifying who currently represents the family and who is authorized to speak on its behalf. The family is asking members of the media to rely on statements issued by its current legal representatives and to respect the family’s right to speak for itself.
On October 1, the family issued its initial statement to media designating its current legal representation. Within, it asked that any inquiries in response to Guyger’s parole, plus commentary, be directed to the counsel listed therein. However, prominent civil rights attorney Lee Merritt issued a statement on October 2 alleging representation of the family, along with additional commentary that is now under dispute.
The DeSoto Tribune has received the following statement from the Botham Jean Family in response to Merritt’s comments:
Official Statement by the Botham Jean Family
“The past eight years have been an incredibly traumatic and painful experience for Botham Jean’s family. The loss of Botham has left our family forever dismembered, and that is something we continue to live with every day.
Yesterday, Officer Guyger was granted parole. Our family statement regarding this development was drafted and released by our attorneys. To be clear, none of those attorneys [are] Lee Merritt.
It was therefore deeply disheartening to see several media outlets report on this matter using a quote from someone who does not speak for our family.
Lee Merritt has not been a part of our legal team since February 22, 2022. He does not represent us in any capacity, nor does he speak on behalf of our family.
We ask that members of the media respect our family’s right to speak for ourselves, particularly during this deeply painful time.
For any further inquiries, please contact Lisa Blue, Athea Trial Lawyers, at lblue@baronandblue.com or Bhavani Reevendran, Raveendran Law LLC at info@brwarrierlaw.com.”
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