A Kentucky grand jury today filed criminal charges against Police Officer Brett Hankison for his involvement in the shooting that ended in the death of Breonna Taylor in Louisville for
"reckless recklessness," or willfully putting people in danger, and having "extreme indifference about human life"
.
Judge Annie O'Connell announced three first-degree charges against Hankison for shooting blindly and recklessly endangering Taylor's neighbors, but she
does not charge him with shooting or killing the young woman
.
Neither were charges brought against the other two police officers who were involved in the incident that killed Taylor last March.
Taylor's family had asked for manslaughter charges.
O'Connell also issued an arrest warrant for Hankison and bail was set at $ 15,000 in cash.
Ben Crump, the attorney for the Taylor family, complained on Twitter.
"The Jefferson County Grand Jury indicts Former Officer Brett Hankison on 3 counts of Unconscionable Danger in the 1st Degree for bullets entering other apartments but NOTHING about the murder of Breonna Taylor. This is outrageous and offensive!"
Taylor, a 26-year-old African-American paramedic, was sleeping at her home in Louisville on March 13 with her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, 27, when three people broke into the home.
"When the officers had no response when calling the house, they decided to open the door," said attorney general Daniel Cameron, adding that they announced their presence, although other sources say they did not.
Forcible entry into a home without identification is a practice that is prohibited by the City of Louisville.
Upon entering the home, Sergeant Johnathan Mattingly said he saw Taylor and Walker at the end of a hallway.
The latter fired a shot at the door and wounded one of the officers in the leg.
Then the shooting started.
Taylor, who was unarmed, was shot eight times and lost her life.
According to Cameron, the FBI is analyzing
whether the shot that hit Taylor was fired by Officer Myles Cosgrove
.
He also stated that there is no evidence that Hankison's shooting injured Taylor.
"Our investigation found that
Mattingly and Cosgrove used force justifiable
after being shot by Kenneth Walker," Cameron said.
The police were looking for two men suspected of selling drugs in a neighborhood more than 10 miles away from the house, according to The Courier-Journal newspaper.
Officers found no drugs in Taylor's home.
[They report that the prosecution offered Breonna Taylor's ex-boyfriend a reduced sentence if he indicted her in a drug case]
Hankison was fired from the Police Department on June 23, accused by Police Chief Robert Schroeder of violating unit procedures by showing "extreme disregard for the value of a human life" by shooting "aimlessly and blindly." rounds of shots at Taylor's apartment.
Mattingly and Cosgrove, as well as Detective Joshua Jaynes, were reassigned after the shooting, but faced no further punishment.
The Kentucky city of Louisville reached a $ 12 million settlement with Taylor's family.
The young woman's mother, Tamika Palmer, filed a lawsuit in late April against three police officers, accusing them of wrongfully causing the death of her daughter.
A city in a state of emergency
Louisville, Kentucky's largest city,
is in a state of emergency
.
The authorities announced a series of measures to face a new day of demonstrations after this judicial announcement.
Mayor Greg Fischer issued a
curfew
order
between 9:00 pm on Wednesday and 6:30 am on Thursday
, in addition to calling for a peaceful protest.
Added to that order is the
closure of downtown traffic
.
Three people injured in Kentucky after a group of white militiamen attacked activists demanding justice for the Breonna Taylor case
July 26, 202000: 21
Taylor's death at the hands of the police joined other cases of police brutality this year, such as the deaths of George Floyd and Jacob Blake, among others,
all made symbols of the fight against racism
.
