Can someone help explain the t-shirt? In my world, 28 year old men don’t wear t-shirts when testifying in court, nor do I know AirBnB managers who make enough to have their own apartments or go out without their wallet. I’m not doubting the man’s testimony in any way, I just don’t understand the context for his life enough to guess if there were other motives for his murder.
Joshua Brown’s testimony–on the stand for about 27 minutes–helps the Defendant Former Police Officer Amber Guyger, in my opinion.
Joshua Brown lived in the apartment complex for about 4 months & testified that he had gone to the wrong floor multiple times & that, at least on one occasion, had gone so far as to place his key into the door lock of the wrong apartment on a different floor than the one where his apartment was located.
Joshua Brown also testified that he saw the Defendant Amber Guyger crying while talking on her cell phone claiming/explaining that she had gone into the wrong apartment thinking that it was her own apartment.
Joshua Brown also testified that he could not understand the words spoken between the Defendant & the victim as they were both talking at the same time. Yet, he also testified that he never heard words like “show me your hands”. Surprised that Amber Guyger’s defense attorneys on cross examination of Joshua Brown did not highlight that he tesetified earlier that he could not understand the words so that Amber Guyger may have given those commands to the victim prior to shooting. (Defense Counsel may have left this for closing argument, however.)
According to news reports, Joshua Brown was shot at close range–once in the chest & once in the mouth–in the parking lot of his new apartment complex which was located about 5 miles away from the apartment complex where the shooting incident occurred. (Seems like a well trained shooter. Wonder whether the gunshot to the mouth–if the news report is correct–was intended to be symbolic & send a message).
As an aside comment, Joshua Brown testified that he was self employed managing three AirBNBs (2 in Los Angeles & one in Atlanta) and was trying to get a fourth AirBNB located in Dallas to manage.
Joshua Brown testified that he met the victim for the first time on the day of the shooting. Leasing agents came to both of their apartments alleging a “noise complaint”, but Joshua Brown testified that there was no noise & that he believed that he & his across the hall neighbor–the victim–were being targeted due to the odor of marijuana since both smoked pot.
Overall, in my opinion, Joshua Brown’s testimony supported the Defendant Amber Guyger’s story / claims about the incident even though he was a witness for the Prosecution / State.
@Publisher, the reports that Mr. Brown was shot in the mouth have been backed off of. Lee Merritt, the attorney (not licensed in Texas) for the Jean family, has been known to advance “facts” and theories before they have actually been established as truth.
I always take what he says with a grain of salt until all facts are known.
Much as Mr. Merritt likes to refer to Mr. Brown as “the key witness,” it was the preponderance of the evidence and Amber Guyger’s own testimony which convinced the jury to convict and later mitigate her sentence.
Local news reported this morning that this is not the first time Mr. Brown has been shot. This is not to imply in any way that the brought it on himself, but is to say that Dallas is a very high crime city, particularly in certain locations. From WFAA news:
I would like to know if this Joshua Brown is indisputably the same Josh Brown noted in the incident above. It is conceivable that his testimony in that case is problematic for others as well. Or it could have been a complete unrelated event.
Link to original DMN article about the November murder/shooting:
I am amazed at the number of people who already know this was a police hit, who already know that this murder won’t be investigated, and already know that had he not testified, he would still be alive. I prefer to wait for even a minimum of information before I dogpile on the police department and accuse them of the revenge killing of a witness whose testimony wasn’t exactly a smoking gun.
It would seem more likely that he would be killed to prevent his upcoming testimony in a murder trial in which the suspect is currently free on bond than after the fact of a completed trial. I don’t understand how the mother could say he had no known enemies In light of this.
It speaks volumes about how low the level of trust in the DPD (or police departments in general) is among some people.
If police departments do not have the trust of law abiding citizens, they will be less effective at their job.
But then there may also be a wider trend in US society, where there is an increasing tendency not to trust some other person or institution – i.e. the default is to treat others with suspicion. Seems like that could lead to truth becoming less relevant and corruption becoming more common.
CNN says that according to Lee Merritt, a Brown family attorney, Joshua Brown and his family believed that he was the target in the earlier shooting that left his friend dead. Merritt says Brown was afraid that the shooter would come back to try to finish the job, he was trying to “keep a low profile,” and he did not want to testify in the Guyger murder trial. According to the article, the shooter from the earlier killing has not been apprehended.
It seems at least plausible that Brown’s fear was justified, and his publicity from the Guyger trial allowed the earlier shooter to find him and kill him.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/07/us/joshua-brown-shooting-death-monday/index.html
Okay, after reading that, I have to agree with @roycroftmom:
Maybe everyone hated him, but do you really expect that’s what his grieving mother is going to say after he was just murdered? Give her a break. Her son is dead.
Regarding the assertion that it doesn’t make sense to shoot the witness after the trial has been decided, I’ll just point out that he was an upcoming witness in a lawsuit against the Dallas police department. I’m not saying that means he was assassinated; I’m just saying that there would have been another testimony.
No @Cardinalfang, I expect the mother to say he was a wonderful much loved young man who was fearful of an alleged murderer on the loose. Or even just say nothing. But surely it occurred to the family that it was a possible motive for the crime?
I had read earlier that his mother had said he was terrified of being the victim of gun violence, but the article did not connect that statement with any involvement he had with witnessing a murder last November and his own victimization during that event.I just figured he was worried about gun violence in general, like many people are.
- - It is a luxury of perspective to believe in police as you do but not a position closer to reality. - -
I’ll confess: spent a night in jail, a long time ago. Redneck white cop, who may have been irritated I looked a little too prosperous and advantaged. (Or, maybe he just never got that bicycle he really, really wanted one Christmas.) Charges were dismissed, though I had to cough up a couple hundred for a lawyer to point out there wasn’t any there there.
Best thing I ever did was get over it and not suspect every redneck white cop of having it in for me.
Joshua Brown was scheduled to testify in an upcoming murder trial (unrelated to the Amber Guyger murder trial), according to news reports filed after his recent death. If true, this may explain why he was shot and killed.
Brown was killed during a drug deal. Police found drugs and a large amount of cash in his apartment. Someone earlier mentioned how odd it was that he wore a DragonBall Z T-shirt to court. Dragon is a street term for heroin.
that also explains his lack of identification on him-maybe one doesn’t take ID if going on drug deals? I never really thought about that. Also explains the source of his income to sustain the apartment-managing just 3 airbnb’s doesn’t generate that kind of income. And here I thought he was a fan of cartoon character dragons (it did seem unusual for a man that age).
https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/08/us/joshua-brown-shooting-tuesday/index.html
So, the plot sickens. Could be his ID was in his backpack, though not sure how relevant that is to anything.
I’m sure we will next be hearing accusations that DPD is involved in posthumous framing of JB and that the three suspects are simply patsies.
At this point do the FBI get involved, since the suspects have apparently left the state of Texas? It would probably be better for the DPD as well as JB’s family for an outside agency to be involved here.
I grew up in a large apartment complex with our own security guards and locked lobbies.
One night someone tried to unlock/open my apartment door (which was locked with 2-3 locks, as was the norm). I called security because the person stayed out there for quite awhile, trying to unlock the locks.
Security came up, I heard voices in the hall but I didn’t open the door.
The guard called me after to say it was a resident from another floor who got off the elevator on my floor thinking it was his. I can’t remember what the guard said exactly but I understood the guy was drunk.
So I get it. But this was NYC and we don’t shoot guns at potential intruders even when we are the ones on the couch. I also never left that apartment door unlocked.
Later in life I lived in a town where no one locked doors. Guests of mine - a group of 4 - accidentally walked into my next door neighbor’s house (late at night). Someone was asleep on the couch but didn’t wake. They realized their mistake, walked next door and told me the story. Could have been tragic.
This is weird?
I exercise most every day by walking or biking and never carry ID when I do that. I often run out of the house for an errand or similar without ID. Honestly the only reason I carry it is if I am driving, or just because it’s in the same place as my credit card, which I often do need for errands.
Why do you carry ID every time you go out? Just habit? You need your wallet?
In some places, there is no daylight at all between the police and the drug dealers. You will probably doubt that is true. I did, too.
The love of money is the root of all evil.