The next exchange was between Judge Kemp and Guyger and also
ended in an unexpected hug; one that not only sent shock
waves across the nation but has drawn fire from the
African-American community in particular as well as a formal
complaint filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
I Messenger reached out to Judge Kemp to provide the facts
and set the record straight on several issues that were
raised during and after the trial.
I Messenger: Explain the difference between a jury trial and
a trial before the court.
Judge Kemp: In the State of Texas, a jury trial is when the
accused has his or her case argued before a jury of 12
citizens. Jurors are selected by prosecutors (the State) and
defense attorneys prior to the trial during the jury
selection process. In a jury trial, the defendant has two
decisions to make — who will decide guilt/innocence, the
judge or a jury, and if convicted, who will decide
punishment, again the judge or a jury.
In contrast, a trial before the court or TBC, is when a
defendant has his or her case presented to the judge of a
specific court and the judge decides both guilt/innocence
and any associated punishment for that individual. Both the
State and the defense have to agree to a trial before the
Court. Just to be clear, the State vs. Amber Guyger was a
jury trial in which the defendant, Ms. Guyger, decided to
have both guilt/innocence and punishment decided by a jury.
I Messenger: One source of contention was your ruling to
allow the jury to consider the Castle Doctrine during their
deliberation on guilt/ innocence. Considering that the law
was actually intended for homeowners, like Botham Jean, to
protect themselves and their homes against intruders, in
this case, like Amber Guyger, why did you allow the Castle
Doctrine in as a self-defense theory in the jury’s
instructions on deliberation during the guilt/innocence
phase of the trial?
Judge Kemp: While I do not comment on my rulings in any
case, I would like to take this opportunity to educate
people on the Castle Doctrine in general terms.
As it pertains to self-defense and deadly force, the Texas
Penal Code states a defendant is entitled to a jury
instruction on self-defense if the issue is raised by the
evidence, whether that evidence is strong or weak,
unimpeached or contradicted, and regardless of what the
trial court may think about the credibility of the defense.
If you deny a defendant their defense, the case will be
reversed and then have to be retried.
I Messenger: What went through your mind in those brief
seconds immediately after Brandt Jean asked you if he could
give Amber Guyger a hug?
Judge Kemp: My first thought was the security risk. I
quickly connected non-verbally with the deputies standing
post inside the courtroom and made a split decision that
Brandt Jean was sincere in his remarks to Ms. Guyger and
that neither he nor Ms. Guyger intended any physical harm
towards one another and allowed the contact between them to
take place, and I knew I was going to have to explain my
decision to Sheriff Brown.
I Messenger: You have been accused by some media outlets and
the court of public opinion, particularly in the African
American community, of disrespecting the victim’s family by
coming off the bench to hug the woman who murdered Botham
Jean and giving her a bible.
Let’s set the record straight on the facts and what led up
to the exchange and ultimate hug between you and Amber
Guyger.
Judge Kemp: Like everyone else in the courtroom after
witnessing the moving, emotional moment between Brandt Jean
and Amber Guyger, I wiped my eyes, then came off the bench
and went directly over to talk to Botham Jean’s family
first.
I offered my condolences to Mr. Jean’s parents and shared
words of comfort and encouragement with them before asking
them if I could hug them, which they agreed to and I hugged
each family member, father, mother, grandmother, sister and
brother one by one. After I spent time with the victim’s
family, I went over to the defense’s table and addressed Ms.
Guyger. I told her, ‘Brandt has forgiven you. You have to
forgive yourself.’ To which Ms. Guyger responded,
‘Do you think God will forgive me?’ I said, ‘Yes.’
Important to note, it was Ms. Guyger who first mentioned
anything about religion. Then and only then, did I respond
to her faith-based inquiry. Although I am a Christian,
because of an individual’s religious freedom rights, I never
discuss anything religious during the performance of my
duties as a judge unless a victim or defendant mentions it
to me first and again only after a trial or plea is
officially completed.
I continued, ‘He has a purpose for you.’ She said, ‘You
think I can have a purpose for my life?’ I said, ‘Yes’ and
she said, ‘I don’t know where to start. I don’t own a
bible.’ Her response prompted me to go to my chambers and
retrieve the bible I keep in my office. I returned to the
courtroom and told Ms. Guyger, ‘You can have this one. I
have three or four more at home. This is the one I use at
work everyday.’ I turned to John 3:16 and read the scripture
to her. I told her when you read this and you get to the
‘whosoever,’ you say ‘Amber.’
I told her she needs to read John 3:16 for the next month so
it could sink in and then to start with the Gospels. I also
told her that the translation that I gave her was difficult
for new believers and she probably needed a study bible. I
told her, ‘If you like, I will get one for you and get it to
your defense team.’ She said, ‘yes’ and told me she would
bring my bible back in 10 years. It was at that point, she
asked, ‘Can I give you a hug?’
Honestly, I hesitated initially and here’s what ran through
my mind in that instant. That Sunday, September 29, which
would have been Botham Jean’s 28th birthday, the sermon I
heard at church was, The One is Greater Than the 99, which
talked about if you are going to attract the lost, you must
show love and compassion. Additionally, I thought about my
job responsibilities as it pertains to my faith, and I have
a duty to act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly. Ms.
Guyger asked me a second time for a hug and I agreed. As she
was hugging me, she was telling me that I was such a good
person and I was fair and good. Contrary to speculation, I
was not praying with her.
I Messenger: Have you ever hugged any other defendants in
your court following the conclusion of a trial or plea in
your court?
Judge Kemp: I have hugged a lot of defendants, but I have
never been asked for a hug by a defendant convicted of a
violent offense before and I have never hugged one defendant
who did not ask me for a hug. On any given day in the 204th
District Court, however, I routinely counsel defendants on
forgiveness and second chances. As a matter of fact, a lot
of the defendants that I have ended up hugging were
initially angry with me because I would not just give them
their time. Instead, when necessary, I required them to go
to treatment and after they completed treatment they would
come back and thank me.
I Messenger: Continuing on that note of second chances, tell
us about Project Phoenix.
Judge Kemp: In my first year on the bench in 2014, I founded
Project Phoenix in partnership with the Dallas AFL-CIO to
provide marketable skills through apprenticeships in the
various trade industries to first-time, non-violent
low-level offenders. Upon successful completion of the
program, offenders’ cases are dismissed and later expunged
from their records. My primary goal in creating this program
was to make sure participants could earn a living wage and
have a true second chance.
I Messenger: One of the female bailiffs has also come under
fire for what appears as if the bailiff is fixing or
caressing Amber Guyger's hair. What was happening?
Judge Kemp: The jury returned a verdict of guilty and I held
Ms. Guyger's bond insufficient. At that point, she was in
the custody of the Dallas County Sheriff's Office and no
longer free to move about.
I instructed the Sheriff's deputies to restrict Ms. Guyger's
movement to the defense workroom, the courtroom and the
restroom. Typically, once a defendant has been convicted,
they are transported to the county jail to be booked and
processed - a process that can take up to three hours.
Instead, I asked that they detain her in the courtroom to
ensure we did not experience any delays in the trial.
What people saw in that moment was actually the bailiff
doing a moderate pat down of the defendant and discreetly
checking her hair for contraband.
I Messenger: After the trial there were protests and
criticism by those who believed 10 years was not enough time
for the fatal shooting of Botham Jean. Do you believe the
sentence was fair given the testimony in this case?
Judge Kemp: That is a question for the jurors. As with any
case, I respect the jury’s verdict. I never question or
comment on a jury’s decision.
I Messenger: Could you as the judge, have overturned the
jury’s sentence and given the defendant a One-on-One with
Judge Tammy Kemp, continued from front page longer sentence?
Judge Kemp: No, by law I could not overturn the jury’s
verdict. Again, once a defendant decides to go before the
jury to decide guilt/innocence and punishment, the jury’s
verdicts in both phases of a trial are the final decisions.
I Messenger: A photo of your political endorsement from the
Dallas Police Association (DPA) Political Action Committee
has been circulating on social media and many voiced
disapproval of the endorsement. In terms of the timeline,
when did you receive the DPA’s endorsement relative to when
Mr. Jean was killed?
Judge Kemp: The Dallas Police Association's Political Action
Committee endorsed both my first campaign in 2014 and my
campaign for reelection in 2018, just as they endorse
multiple judicial candidates in every election cycle. During
my last election, DPA announced their endorsement of my
campaign for re-election in the fall of 2017. Amber Guyger
shot and killed Mr. Botham Jean on September 6, 2018.
Obviously, no one could have predicted this horrific tragedy
would occur a year later, long after the organization
endorsed my campaign.
I Messenger: On October 3, 2019, the Freedom from Religion
Foundation filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics
Commission, against you for the now ‘infamous hug.’ Do you
believe your actions were inappropriate? Judge Kemp:
Obviously, I do not think it was inappropriate, but I will
leave that decision to the Ethics Commission.
I Messenger: On October 4, 2019, you summoned Dallas County
Criminal District Attorney John Creuzot to appear before the
204th Judicial District Court for a contempt of court
hearing that is scheduled to take place on October 31. What
is the purpose of this hearing and why do you believe it is
necessary?
Judge Kemp: On September 23, the very first day of trial, as
the attorneys and I were wrapping up preliminary matters
outside the presence of the jury, Amber Guyger’s defense
team informed the court that our elected DA had appeared in
a new television interview alleging that it was in direct
violation of the court’s gag order prohibiting both the
prosecutors and defense lawyers from speaking publicly about
the case and/or trial in any way.
It was determined and confirmed that the DA’s interview on
FOX 4 News was not taped the night before the beginning of
trial, but in fact had been taped on September 20, 2019,
which was three days before the trial was set to begin. Due
to the high volume of media coverage on this case, I had put
a gag order in place in January of this year for all parties
involved in the case. In general, the purpose of a court’s
gag order on any case is to prohibit the parties from trying
their case in the public.
A contempt of court hearing, also known as a show cause
hearing, requires the alleged violator to appear before the
court and explain why he/she did not adhere to the court’s
order(s). I believe it is necessary in this case, just as it
would be with any case, because court orders are meant to be
followed, no exceptions. Additionally, with all of the hard
work that went into this case on both sides, it was pretty
shocking to learn that the order had allegedly been
violated, a decision that technically could have resulted in
a mistrial before the trial even started, had any of the
jurors seen the interview.
However, after I watched the interview, I polled each juror
individually and confirmed that none of them had seen it and
the trial proceeded accordingly.
I Messenger: What would you like for people to know about
the 204th Court?
Judge Kemp: I want people to know that we treat everyone
with compassionate accountability in our court. My
principles for running were to be accountable to the public,
compassionate towards victims and fair to the accused, and
we’ve made those principles the bedrock of everything we do
in court.
Tammy Kemp is the presiding Judge of the 204th Judicial
District Court. There has been a transformation and many
successes since she took the bench. Judge Kemp is a native
of Wewoka, OK and earned a Bachelor of Business
Administration in Finance and a Juris Doctorate degree from
OU. After graduating law school, she worked as an Assistant
Attorney General and an Assistant Secretary of State for the
State of Oklahoma, before relocating to the Dallas area.
She has been practicing law since 1988 and her areas of
expertise include criminal, corporate and retirement law. In
her previous role of Administrative Chief of the Family
Violence and Child Abuse Divisions at the Dallas County
District Attorney’s (DA) Office, she supervised 28
attorneys, 21 investigators, and 18 support staff. Her
duties included the investigation and prosecution of
criminal offenses, including death penalty capital murders.
She is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the State Bar
of Oklahoma and has been a member of Concord Church for more
than 26 years, where she serves as a Deaconess. A member of
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Judge Kemp is married to a
wonderful, supportive husband and they have three amazing
children.
******************
Cheryl Smith is the publisher/editor of Texas Metro News, I
Messenger and the Garland Journal. A proud graduate
of Florida A&M University, Ms. Smith is the secretary of the
National Association of Black Journalists. She was in the
courtroom during the Amber Guyger Murder Trial and provided
daily coverage on various social media platforms. You can
follow her on social media at @penonfire or reach her at mspenonfire@gmail.com.
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