Judge hugs convicted ex-police officer after sentencing, gives her Bible. Watch Video
A former Dallas police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing her neighbour. But there was something else that came in as a surprise. The judge gave a hug and Bible to the former Dallas police officer, saying she couldn't refuse the convicted ex-cop. Judge Tammy Kempt said she watched the woman changed during her trial and wants her to live a purposeful life.
In the video, Judge Tammy Kempt can be seen hugging Amber Guyger.
Kemp said she had never previously acknowledged her Christian faith to a defendant or given one a Bible, but Amber Guyger said she didn't have one at the end of her trial for the September 2018 killing of her upstairs neighbour, Botham Jean.
“She asked me if I thought that God could forgive her and I said, ‘Yes, God can forgive you and has,’” Kemp told The Associated Press.
“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,” she said. “Because she still has a lot of life ahead of her following her sentence and I would hope that she could live it purposefully.”
Critics contend that it was unethical of Kemp to hug Guyger and give her the Bible. One group asked for a judicial misconduct investigation, and some activists have said the hug took the focus off justified anger at a police killing.
