Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron acknowledged Tuesday night that he never recommended that murder charges be brought against any of the police officers involved in Breonna Taylor's death.
The prosecutor said Tuesday night in an interview with WDRB television that the actions of Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove "
were justified
" as they had been shot by Taylor's boyfriend.
Mattingly shot
six times
and Cosgrove
shot
16.
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A day earlier, he confessed that the only charge he recommended to the grand jury was recklessness against Brett Hankison, who pleaded not guilty on Monday and faces charges of shooting at a neighbor's home (not for Taylor's death).
Cameron said
a court will release a recording of the grand jury investigation on Wednesday.
["I never had faith": Breonna Taylor's family criticizes the attorney general and demands to make public the transcripts of his investigation]
"We are not concerned about grand jury members sharing their thoughts on our presentation because we are confident in the case we are presenting," Cameron said in a written statement.
His remarks come after a grand jury member filed a motion Monday in Louisville for the sealed jury transcripts to be released.
According to this, Cameron
used the grand jury as a shield and did not assume his responsibilities.
Kevin Glogower, an anonymous jury attorney, said Tuesday his client believes Cameron "may not have presented" all the evidence to the grand jury, although he did not specify what evidence may have been missing.
Tamika Palmer, mother of Breonna Taylor.AP
For his part, a lawyer for Taylor's family reiterated the need to release the entire record.
"Since the grand jury decision was announced, we have been saying that Daniel Cameron clearly did not present a full case to support justice for Breonna," attorney Ben Crump said in a press release Tuesday.
[Criticism rains down on Kentucky's first black prosecutor after the Breonna Taylor ruling]
The prosecutor pointed out last week that it had been the grand jury that had decided not to charge any of the three officers who fired their weapons in the police raid that killed Taylor on March 13 with murder.
The decision not to charge any of the officers for Taylor's fatal shooting sparked outrage in several cities across the country.
What is the grand jury?
The grand jury system comes from the old criminal justice system of the United States, inspired by that of England.
Public disclosure of its minutes is rare.
The Supreme Court ruled that states do not need to use grand juries.
As a result, around half of the states no longer require them.
[They report that the prosecution offered Breonna Taylor's ex-boyfriend a reduced sentence if he indicted her in a drug case]
The grand jury transcripts were released on the Michael Brown police shooting in Missouri.
But a judge refused to release the minutes of the grand jury that decided not to indict New York City officials in the 2014 death of Eric Garner.
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A grand jury does not decide if someone is guilty or innocent, it only focuses on deciding if there is "probable cause" to charge someone.
If the grand jury decides there is probable cause, it votes to indict a crime, which makes it easier for prosecutors to pursue the case.
The work of a grand jury is recorded, but sealed for the public.
With information from AP, NBC News, WDRB and The Washington Post.