Victims of the struggle: Botham Jean & Joshua Brown

In the world we live in, it’s not surprising to hear the news report on the fatal shooting of a black man by police.

These types of occurrences are disheartening, frustrating, unfortunate — but they’re damn sure not unusual.

That brings me to the death of Botham Jean, a young black man in corporate America, who, on Sept. 6, 2018, was murdered in his home by a white off-duty police officer.

According to multiple reports, Amber Guyger allegedly mistook Jean’s place for hers and him for a burglar. She was sentenced to 10 years for the reckless act, but truth be told, her time behind bars won’t fill the void in Jean’s family. He’s gone…

And so is Joshua Brown, a key witness in Guyger’s trial. She was initially charged with manslaughter, but it was enhanced to murder; Brown’s testimony played a significant role in her conviction. Ironically, a couple days after Guyger received her sentence, Brown was shot multiple times in the parking lot of his apartment complex and later pronounced dead at an area hospital.

Judging from the timeline of events, it’s hard not to question if Brown’s murder is linked to his participation in the Guyger trial. But, according to the Dallas Police Department (DPD), that isn’t the case.

The DPD recently revealed Brown’s death is the result of a drug deal gone awry, and also identified three men as suspects. Two of them have already been arrested; law enforcement is still searching for the third suspect.

So what exactly happened to Brown?

On the night of Oct. 4, he was allegedly in the midst of a drug transaction with the defendants when he and one of them got into a physical altercation. This led to a shootout between the two, leaving Brown hit with multiple bullets and one of the suspects wounded, as well. Brown was later pronounced dead at an area hospital.

Something worth acknowledging is the fact Brown said he worried about his safety long before this occurred, and was reluctant to testify in the Guyger case. He’d been shot (and another person was killed) in November 2018 after a scuffle turned into gunfire.

Following Brown’s death this past week, law enforcement searched his apartment and confiscated around $4,000, 12 pounds of weed, along with some other illegal items. The DPD is currently investigating his murder, but Brown’s family has requested to have a separate investigation conducted by an outside agency.

No doubt this is a peculiar situation all the way around. I mean, what are the odds of someone being mistaken as an intruder in their own home and shot to death? And what are the odds of the person who helped put their killer behind bars being murdered days after the sentencing?

Whether foul play is involved or not, it’s these types of situations that forces one to question the integrity of our government, law enforcement officials and judicial system. Truth be told, I’ve met different attorneys, police officers, judges and so forth who were super cool. I’ve also encountered others who were the complete opposite. At the end of the day, that really doesn’t matter, though, but upholding the law rather than manipulating it to one’s advantage definitely does.

Sadly, Jean and Brown were both in their twenties when they lost their lives — the same case for a lot of black men around the world who have been murdered during police-involved shootings and senseless acts of violence. That being said, in a world that’s corrupt, crazy and unpredictable, you never know who you’ll come across during your day or what situation you’ll find yourself in that could potentially turn ugly. That’s why it’s important for us to not only enjoy our lives to the fullest, but know our rights and be able to protect ourselves and our families. I mean, you never know what could happen while you’re chilling at home minding your own business. Let that sink in.