The search for Botham Jean's apartment ignites outrage at the character assassination of the victim

The Dallas man's family lawyer, shot by a police officer in his own apartment, says the police are trying to discredit the victim.

Botham Shem Jean, 26, died on September 6 after the guard officer Amber Guyger entered her apartment, thinking that she was in his own (which is on a floor below) and shot him twice.

Lawyer Lee Merritt, who represents Jean's family, criticized the police's search warrant, obtained in the hours following the shooting, in an attempt to discredit Jean after his death.

"They immediately started to mess it up," Merritt told The Associated Press.

According to a search warrant affidavit issued on Thursday, police seized two rounds of fire cartridges, a laptop, a ballistic safety vest, a police-backed backpack and papers, two radio-frequency identification keys. and a marijuana mill, among others, from Jean's apartment.

The affidavit did not indicate who owned the items, according to a copy obtained by NBC Dallas-Fort Worth.

Lawyer Benjamin Crump, who also represents Jean's family, told NBC DFW that Jean's family does not know who owns the marijuana. Still, Crump argued that the drugs seized were "nothing but a disgusting attempt to murder his character now that they murdered his person".

Cornell William Brooks, the president of the National Association for the Advancement of People of Color, agreed:

Although the affidavit for the search warrant for Jean's apartment was made public on Thursday, the same day as Jean's funeral, the one concerning Guyger's apartment was not. The Dallas Police Service and the Texas Rangers did not immediately respond to HuffPost's request to find out whether his apartment had been raided during the investigation.

David Menschel, an Oregon-based criminal defense lawyer and activist, called the publication a "propaganda" search warrant.

"An off-duty policeman goes to the wrong apartment and shoots the man who dies there. So, as we expected, the local police do everything in their power to denigrate the innocent victim – to suggest to him was "not an angel" and therefore apparently deserved to be shot at his home, said Menschel at HuffPost. "And much of the media is playing the game, amplifying the propaganda of the forces of order."

After the affidavit was published, Fox 4 News published an article on the search of Jean's home. The title, which has since been changed, has highlighted the marijuana in the affidavit of the search warrant without mentioning other items seized in Jean's apartment.

People on Twitter have called the Fox 4 title irresponsible and reckless, noting that the discovery of marijuana had nothing to do with John's death.

Tom Angell, a marijuana activist and publisher of the news site Marijuana Moment, said the title of Fox 4 News incorrectly suggested that Jean was at fault for his death.

"For Fox 4, finding and playing this result as he did – implying that cannabis use might have justified his killing – is an irresponsible report," Angell told HuffPost. It "demonstrates that people of color, even dead, suffer disproportionate and discriminatory treatment for something that many whites do with impunity."

Matt Schweich, Deputy Director of the Policy Reform Group Marijuana Policy Project, asked why the officials had not issued a search warrant for Guyger's apartment.

"A small amount of personal marijuana has nothing to do with this tragedy. It's as relevant as a six-pack beer, "Schweich told HuffPost.

"If the privacy of an innocent victim is to be invaded by the publication of a search warrant, the author's private life must at least be invaded in the same way," said Schweich.

The search warrant also contradicted Guygers' affidavit of arrest, released Monday. In the affidavit, Guyger testified that Jean was on the other side of the room in his apartment at the time of filming. The search warrant, signed by a Dallas police officer, indicated that Jean had confronted Guyger at the front door.

In the affidavit of arrest, Guyger also stated that she could enter Jean's apartment because the door was slightly ajar and said that she had shot Jean after ignoring his "verbal orders".

Guyger was arrested and charged with manslaughter on Sunday. She was later released on a $ 300,000 bond by CBS News.

Matt Ferner contributed to this report.