Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced Wednesday that one officer will be criminally charged in relation to the shootout that killed Breonna Taylor, an emergency room technician who Louisville police fatally shot in March — but the charge pertains to Taylor’s neighbors.
Former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison, 44, was indicted on three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment. The two other officers involved in the deadly raid — Sergeant Jonathan Mattingly and officer Myles Cosgrove — are not facing criminal charges, the Louisville Courier-Journal reported.
Cameron’s announcement comes on the heels of reports that the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department declared a state of emergency. As part of the order, police restricted access to downtown Louisville.
A day before the indictment, Mattingly reportedly sent a six-paragraph email to about 1,000 officers decrying potential rioting and protesting related to Taylor’s case. In the email, Mattingly also denounced police and FBI officials — who he asserted “aren’t cops and would piss their pants if they had to hold the line.”
“You DO NOT DESERVE to be in this position. The position that allows thugs to get in your face and yell, curse and degrade you. Throw bricks bottles and urine on you and expect you to do nothing,” he wrote, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal.
On March 13, Hankison, Cosgrove, and Mattingly reportedly fatally shot Taylor while executing a search warrant at her home. The warrant was one of five police issued as they investigated Taylor’s former boyfriend, Jamarcus Glover. Glover was found 10 miles from Taylor’s apartment the same night as her shooting death, according to reports.
Walker was initially charged with the attempted murder of a police officer and first-degree assault, but prosecutors dropped the charges due to a lack of evidence.
READ: Continuing coverage on Breonna Taylor
In late June, Louisville Metro police Interim Chief Robert Schroeder fired officer Hankison in connection with the deadly raid. Schroeder said Hankinson “blindly” fired 10 rounds into Taylor’s apartment and the unit next door. Hankinson is in the process of challenging his termination.
Last week, the city of Louisville agreed to pay Taylor’s family $12 million — the largest settlement in the city’s history for police misconduct.
This is a developing story. Check with CrimeOnline for updates as they become available…
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[Featured image: Breonna Taylor/Instagram; Brett Hankison/Louisville police]
