Case
In 2019, Police Officer Amber Guyger was convicted of the murder of Botham Jean in a 2017 case in which she entered his apartment and shot him thinking he was an intruder in her own nearby apartment, according to her testimony. Guyger was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The younger brother of Botham spoke in court after the conviction was read stating that he forgave Guyger and requested that he be allowed to hug her, which he did.
Discussion
Regarding Brandt Jean’s forgiveness of Amber Guyger for the murder of his elder brother and hugging her in the courtroom, it goes beyond the call of moral duty. While some people called it inspirational and an example to follow, even the defense attorney who represented Guyger only went as far as expressing hope that others would follow it (Chakrabarti & Scheimer, 2019). Stating that forgiving a murderer of a close and dear relative is a moral obligation would stretch the definition of duty too far. The fact of the murder of Botham Jean will not change, and Botham will not become miraculously alive again. Therefore, there is no reason to expect that the fact of resentment over this murder should disappear either. As such, forgiving someone for murdering a close and loved relative is certainly a right, but it is not a moral duty.
Trevor Noah’s commentary on Guyger being forgiven and the resentment this event produced among some observers addresses a crucial point by discussing not so much the event but the narrative built around it. As he points out, the media deliberately chose to put an emphasis on forgiveness in the case of a white female murderer, but they rarely, if ever, do so for black makes (Noah, 2019). This is an essential point because, while Brandt Jean’s decision to forgive is his personal business, the nationwide representation of the high-profile case in media is a matter of public importance. By emphasizing forgiveness in the case of a white woman committing a blatant murder and denying the same treatment to black makes in the news coverage of their crimes, the media implicitly foster societal expectations. Such expectations are likely the reason why Guyger immediately perceived Botham Jean, a black man, to be an intruder and opened fire without thinking it was she who might be intruding. As such, Noah’s commentary reaches the heart of the matter.
References
Chakrabarti, M., and Scheimer, D. (2019). Botham Jean, Amber Guyger and the question of forgiveness in the court. WBUR. Web.
Noah, T. [The Daily Show with Trevor Noah]. (2019). The Botham Jean murder verdict and its complex emotional aftermath [Video]. YouTube, Web.