Protesters rallied outside of AT&T Stadium before the Cowboys game Sunday night over the death of Botham Jean, the 26-year-old man killed by a Dallas police officer at his apartment earlier this month.
The protesters were also rallying over the death of 24-year-old O'Shae Terry, a man who was shot and killed by an Arlington officer during a traffic stop this month.
Nine protesters were arrested for blocking the intersection of Collins Street and Randol Mill, but they had broken away from the main protest at that point, said Lt. Chris Cook, a police spokesman. They face a Class C misdemeanor charge for blocking the roadway.
The protesters wheeled two caskets – a symbolic funeral procession for Jean and Terry – along Randol Mill Road to the northeast entrance of the stadium, stopping beneath the statue of Tom Landry. They called for justice for Jean, demanding that Dallas officer Amber Guyger, who faces a manslaughter charge in Jean's death, be charged with murder.
They also demanded Guyger's termination from DPD.
The protesters also voiced their frustrations with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and his stance on national anthem protests. Jones said before the season that NFL players should stand for the anthem.
"We also come with an invitation – to Jerry Jones, to Dak Prescott, to the entire Cowboys organization – to join us in the fight for justice," one of the speakers at the rally said, as hundreds of Cowboys and Giants fans passed by, heading into the stadium.
The protesters then prayed and took a knee in honor of Jean and Terry.
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Terry was fatally shot by an Arlington officer during a traffic stop on Sept. 1.
Body camera video showed an officer talking to Terry and his passenger while another officer ran Terry's plate information. Terry then rolled up his windows, the video showed. The officer yelled for him to stop, reached into the car from the window and jumped onto the SUV's running boards. As the car started to drive away, the officer fired multiple times at Terry, who later died at a hospital.
Lee Merritt, the attorney for Terry's family who is also representing Jean's family, has called for the Arlington officer who shot Terry to be fired. The case is still being investigated.