The judge who hugged an ex-Dallas police officer after she was sentenced to prison for killing her neighbor says the embrace was appropriate.
Kristin LamThe judge who hugged an ex-Dallas police officer after she was sentenced to prison for killing her neighbor said Monday the embrace was appropriate.
“Following my own convictions, I could not refuse that woman a hug. I would not,” said Kemp, who is black. “And I don’t understand the anger. And I guess I could say if you profess religious beliefs and you are going to follow them, I would hope that they not be situational and limited to one race only.”
State District Judge Tammy Kemp gives former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger a hug before Guyger leaves for jail, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019, in Dallas.Critics called Kemp's actions unethical and one group requested a judicial misconduct investigation. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a secular Wisconsin-based group that routinely files lawsuits challenging religious displays in government, filed a complaint saying Kemp was proselytizing from the bench.
“I didn’t do that from the bench,” she said. “I came down to extend my condolences to the Jean family and to encourage Ms. Guyger because she has a lot of life to live.”Some activists also criticized the hugs for taking focus off anger at a police killing of an unarmed black man. Jean's mother, Allison, called for reform in the Dallas Police Department, telling"CBS This Morning" she did not want her son's actions to be"misconstrued as a complete forgiveness.
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