Jury pool for cop who killed black man asked about biases

DALLAS (AP) — Prosecutors and defense attorneys in the murder trial of a white Dallas police officer who fatally shot her unarmed black neighbor inside his own apartment worked Friday to get potential jurors to open up about biases and feelings they might have about police, in a case that has sparked fierce debate over race, politics and policing.

A week after jury selection began, would-be jurors in Amber Guyger's trial for the killing of Botham Jean returned to a Dallas courthouse where they were questioned by attorneys and the judge about their ability to serve in the high-profile case. By Friday evening, State District Judge Tammy Kemp had sent all of the potential jurors home and told them they would be called by the next day if chosen to serve.

The demographics of the jury will be closely watched in the case that has drawn widespread attention and sparked outrage. While lawyers did not ask the jury pool explicitly about race, critics — including Jean's family — have questioned why Guyger was not taken into custody immediately after the shooting and whether race played a factor in her decision to use deadly force.

Guyger, who has since been fired, shot and killed Jean in the apartment building where they both lived last September. Guyger, 31, was off duty but still in uniform after finishing what she told investigators was a 15-hour shift. She said that she confused Jean's apartment with her own , which was directly below his, and mistook the 26-year-old accountant from the Caribbean island nation St. Lucia for a burglar.

John Helms, a Dallas-based defense attorney and former federal prosecutor who isn't involved in the case, said potential jurors' views on race and their interactions with law enforcement will be relevant to who is picked.

"Without knowing anything more about a person, race — I think...