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Former Detective Brett Hankison, one of the officers involved in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, has been indicted by the grand jury of Jefferson Country for three counts of wanton endangerment of the first degree. The remaining officers, Detective Myles Cosgrove, who fired at Ms. Taylor, and Detective Jonathan Mattingly have not been charged at all.
The announcement came on Wednesday, 23 September, after Kentucky Attorney General Dave Cameron’s office presented the grand jury with their findings. The investigation had been launched in May.
Prosecutor Daniel Cameron argued that the latter officers' actions had been “justified to protect themselves", elaborating: "the justification bars us from pursuing criminal charges”. Mattingly and Cosgrove have been on administrative reassignment since the shooting, whereas Hankison was fired for firing "indiscriminately" into Taylor’s apartment.
There has been international outcry against the jury’s decision, as the claim of wanton endangerment implies criminal charges for property damage to the neighboring apartment, but not for Ms. Taylor’s death. Renowned attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Taylor's family, has described the decision as "outrageous and offensive."
Kentucky city officials also offered Ms. Taylor’s family a $12 million settlement earlier in September, which included several police reforms. The settlement was accepted.
Following the announcement, Louisville Metro’s Mayor Fischer had to put the city under a 72-hour curfew, effective from 9.00 – 6.30 am, as city officials feared violent protests in response to the grand jury's verdict.
As a state of emergency was declared the air of an oncoming siege loomed over downtown Louisville, with boards nailed across buildings and concrete barriers cordoning off a 25-block perimeter. Louisville Metro Police interim Chief Robert Schroeder said the restrictions were supposed to protect public safety, property, protesters and avoid conflicts between drivers and demonstrators, amid “unprecedented times.”
Across social media, the international community saw Louisville garnering international attention because of the protesters who had taken to the streets, demanding justice. The victim’s mother, Tanika Palmer, stated her distrust in Attorney General Daniel Cameron. Palmer did not believe her family would be able to achieve justice for Ms. Taylor, despite marching in protest for 119 consecutive days.
“My hope was that he [Daniel Cameron] knew he had the power to do the right thing, that he had the power to start the healing of this city, that he had the power to help mend over 400 years of oppression. What he helped me realize is that it will always be us against them. That we are never safe,” she said.
Celebrities and politicians have all taken to using their platforms, calling for the arrest of all three officers involved in Ms. Taylor’s killing.
“Brett Hankison is indicted for shooting into the apartment NEXT to Breonna Taylor & not for KILLING HER. He’s fired for shooting into BREONNA TAYLOR’S apartment & not for KILLING HER. This is systemic racism. Property is worth more than a Black woman.” — W. Kamau Bell, comedian, TV host, via Twitter.
“Black Lives Matter. Breonna Taylor’s life mattered. What has been announced in Kentucky is not even remotely in the realm of anything that even begins to approach true justice for her murder. #BlackLivesMatter #BreonnaTaylorWasMurdered” — Anthony Rapp, actor, via Twitter.
“The white supremacist institution of policing that stole Breonna Taylor’s life from us must be abolished for the safety and well being of our people.” — Colin Kaepernick, American Civil Rights Activist and football quarterback, via Twitter
Under Kentucky law, wanton endangerment is a criminal activity in which a person “wantonly engages in conduct which creates a substantial danger of death or serious physical injury to another person, under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life.”
It is a class D felony in Kentucky, the lowest level, which means that it can lead to imprisonment for up to 1-5 years, and a fine for each conviction. Former detective Hankison is expected to pay fines for three counts: for endangering the couple in the neighboring apartment and their 5-year-old child.
On Wednesday, 30 September, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron was granted permission by a judge to publicly release the audios of the secret deliberations of the grand jury. The official audio of the proceedings, which led to the charge of wanton endangerment, is more than 20 hours long. The recording provides an insight into the evidence, witnesses, and charges presented by the prosecutors during the course of the trial. The audio offered a rare glimpse into the process of the jurors, however there was conflicting testimony over what happened in the final moments before Ms. Taylor was fatally shot and killed by the police.
Incidentally, the audio does include the prosecutor’s statements or recommendations on what charges were to be brought up. Mr. Cameron stated that juror had been duly presented with “all the evidence” and that officers who shot Ms.Taylor - Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove- were justified in their actions. Detective Cosgrove also described the scene to be chaotic and disorienting, stating in an interview that he was “overwhelmed with bright flashes and darkness, and what I describe as a movie reel that’s doing that ticking where you see white and black, white and black.”
Another feature of the audio is that Ms.Taylor’s boyfriend said he was “scared to death" by the invasion. The indicted officer, Brett Hankison, allegedly thought he saw someone inside armed with an AR-15, a type of military-style semi automatic rifle. He also said that he was expecting an unarmed, Black woman, with no criminal record, and had not expected a firefight.
One inconsistency that arose was that the officers on the night of the raid said that they had knocked on the door and identified themselves as the police several times before resorting to using the battering ram. However, Kenneth Walker does not recall hearing any warnings.
Detective Michael Nobles said he had knocked and announced himself for one or two minutes, before using a battering ram to force his way into Ms. Taylor’s apartment. However, in earlier interviews with The New York Times, 11 out of 12 witnesses on the scene that night said they never heard the police identify themselves. One witness claimed that he only heard the group say “police” once.
On October 21, in a written statement, an anonynmous grand juror said that the jury was only allowed to consider wanton endangerment charges against one officer. Questions were asked about bringing other charges “and the grand jury was told there would be none because the prosecutors didn’t feel they could make them stick,” said the grand juror.
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