|
Don't like to read?
|
Many people around the U.S. are protesting to fight for justice for Breonna Taylor. On March 13, 2020, she was allegedly killed by officers while she was asleep.
On the day of her death, officers Brett Hankson, Myles Cosgrove, and Jonathan Mattingly entered her apartment dressed like civilians, on a narcotics search warrant. Her boyfriend Kenneth Walker was present when the officers entered — they exchanged gunfire.
Walker, a licensed gun owner, thought the officers were intruders, he tried to protect himself and his girlfriend. He was arrested for wounding an officer but on May 22, the prosecutor dropped the attempted murder charges. 
On April 27, Taylor’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the City of Louisville and its Police Department. Louisville agreed to pay Breonna’s family a $12 million settlement and agreed to police reform. The settlement was viewed by activists as a start of justice for her death.
Six months after Taylor’s death, the officials of Kentucky announced that they will only charge one of the policemen, Brett Hankison, with three counts of wanton endangerment. The charges he faces have nothing to do with her death, it has more to do with endangering Breonna’s neighbors. After the public received the news from the grand jury masses of people begin to protest.
Written by Jessica Letcher
Edited by Cathy Milne-Ware
Sources:
CNN: Outrage over lack of charges in Breonna Taylor’s death turns into protests across the US; Madeline Holcombe
The Los Angeles Times: A timeline of events related to the killing of Breonna Taylor
ABC 7 News: Breonna Taylor decision: Chicago protests draw hundreds across city, remain peaceful; Illinois National Guard on standby; Jessica D’Onofrio
Featured Image Courtesy of Chad Davis’ Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Rasande Tyskar’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
