Former police officer Amber Guyger had a new look in court Tuesday in Dallas — and that was no accident, legal experts say.

Guyger, 30, struck a softer appearance than she did earlier this month for her second courthouse visit since being indicted on a murder charge in the death of Botham Jean.

A change in body language and clothes is common for defendants trying to win over a judge and jury, legal experts say.

"Every time she is appearing at the courthouse, the public and, ultimately, her jury is looking at her," said George Milner III, a local defense attorney. "A defense attorney would make every effort to have their client present to the media a look that is consistent with innocence."

The result of Tuesday's meeting at the Frank Crowley Courts Building was unclear because a gag order prevents anyone associated with the case from speaking publicly.

No trial date has been set in the case. Court records show prosecutors have subpoenaed Guyger's training records.

Guyger was off-duty but in uniform Sept. 6 when she killed Jean in his Cedars apartment, a block away from Dallas police headquarters. She told law enforcement she mistook his fourth-floor apartment for her own and thought the 26-year-old accountant was a burglar.

Legal experts unaffiliated with the case say Guyger’s attorneys have their work cut out for them. Guyger’s actions made news around the world, and she is regularly reviled on social media.

Jean's mother, Allison Jean, called Guyger "the devil."

For her first court date Jan. 8, Guyger wore an open black jacket and pants with a blue shirt. She pulled her straight dark blond hair into a ponytail.

The look, Dallas defense attorney Robbie McClung said, “screamed law enforcement.” By this week's appearance, the focus had shifted, McClung said.

On Tuesday, wavy hair fell past Guyger's shoulders and her white pantsuit jacket was buttoned. She looked straight ahead more often.

"You want to go up to her and say, 'I like your suit. Where did you get your suit?'" McClung said.

One of Guyger's attorneys, Toby Shook, declined to comment, citing a gag order by state District Judge Tammy Kemp.

Lee Merritt, an attorney for Jean's family, said defense attorneys are using racial stereotypes and prejudice to help Guyger beat a murder charge.

"Highlighting her golden locks and daintiness is a direct appeal to the American culture's propensity to come to the defense of white womanhood," Merritt said. "They are playing into long-held prejudices of black male criminality and and white purity."

Amber Guyger and Botham Jean (Mesquite police and Instagram)

Nothing happened inside the courtroom either day that Guyger appeared at the courthouse this month. But she was photographed and filmed by the media on her way to and from a room reserved for defense attorneys and their clients across the hall from Kemp's court.

Even though jury selection in Guyger's case isn't yet on the horizon, the public and potential jurors are watching news coverage, attorneys say. Every video and photo is an opportunity to reach them.

The new look is deliberate, orchestrated by the defense, Milner said.

His clients include numerous police officers, as well as former Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent. He was sentenced to probation for killing his teammate and best friend Jerry Brown in a drunken-driving crash.

Clothes and body language "might make the difference" in swaying a jury, Milner said, although how it works and how well is "very subjective."

Defendants convey innocence by holding their heads up, Milner said. Looking down like Guyger did at her first court appearance conveys feelings of guilt, he said. Milner said he advised Brent to keep his head up as he walked past the cameras but said he didn't have to talk to reporters.

"In a high-profile case, every day is game day," he said.

But, McClung said, if you hold your head too high "you look like you think you're better than everyone else."

1 / 2Dallas Cowboys player Josh Brent stood trial for intoxication manslaughter at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas in January 2014.(DMN file photo) 2 / 2Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent was dressed in a sweatshirt and pants as his teammates warmed up before a game in November 2014.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer)

Style transformations are common, attorneys say. Clothes are nicer. Glasses may be added or taken away. Tattoos are covered.

But defense attorney Erin Hendricks said defendants can’t change their appearance so much that they don’t look or act like themselves. A judge and jury won’t buy it.

“You have to be authentic. Too many people are going to see right through it if you try to be someone you’re not,” Hendricks said. “In the criminal courthouse, you could be seen as a fraud — trying to be somebody you’re not.”

Not everyone dresses the part for court. It's not uncommon to see defendants wearing pajama bottoms and T-shirts with profane slogans in the courthouse hallways.

Hendricks said she is regularly asked by clients what they should wear or if they should shave or get a haircut. She tells them to dress comfortably but respectfully — like if they were going to a funeral or the principal’s office.

Former Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver first showed up at the courthouse with a beard and dark suits after he was charged with murder in the 2017 shooting of 15-year-old Jordan Edwards.

At trial, Oliver was clean-shaven and wore a puzzle-piece-shaped autism pin on the lapel of his gray suit the day he testified. His son, Tab, has autism.

It's unclear whether the change made a difference. A Dallas County jury sentenced Oliver to 15 years in prison in August for shooting into a car full of teens driving away from a party, killing Jordan.

Like Guyger, Oliver was free on bond when he appeared in court. Dressing clients for court appearances is harder when they're in jail, defense attorneys say.

1 / 2Roy Oliver was clean-shaven and wore a puzzle-shaped autism pin when he testified before a jury last year at his murder trial. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.(Rose Baca / Staff Photographer) 2 / 2Roy Oliver sported a beard and a dark suit at a hearing the month before his trial for killing 15-year-old Jordan Edwards.(Rose Baca / Staff Photographer)

Milner said he often requests for defendants in jail to be allowed regular clothes instead of jail jumpsuits for hearings, especially when cameras will be present. Judges are only required to allow street clothes for trials, he said.

McClung said she has been scolded by bailiffs for giving her clients lip gloss or a hair brush to help them look more presentable. And, sometimes, jailed defendants wear the same clothes for trial day after day.

Ultimately, McClung said, Guyger and any other client wants to project the same message with her appearance.

“How could they say she did these things?" the attorney said of that message. "She looks too nice. She looks too sweet."

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