Category Archives: Breonna Taylor

Breonna Taylor neighbor tells of horror as police bullets flew past sleeping son

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Chelsey Napper tells court she was ‘scared to death’ on night Taylor, 26, was shot dead by Louisville police in botched raid

Breonna Taylor’s neighbor recalled her horror as police bullets flew into her apartment near her sleeping son as a federal trial for the former Louisville officer who fired those shots began Thursday.

Former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison fired 10 shots during the botched raid in March 2020 that left Taylor dead, though it was another officer who fatally shot the 26-year-old Black woman. Hankison, 47, is charged with two federal civil rights violations for endangering Taylor, her boyfriend and Taylor’s neighbors, who shared a wall with her apartment. None of Hankison’s shots hit anyone.

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‘It never stops’: killings by US police reach record high in 2022

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Law enforcement killed at least 1,176 people or about 100 people a month last year, making it the deadliest for police violence

US law enforcement killed at least 1,176 people in 2022, making it the deadliest year on record for police violence since experts first started tracking the killings, a new data analysis reveals.

Police across the country killed an average of more than three people a day, or nearly 100 people every month last year according to Mapping Police Violence. The non-profit research group maintains a database of reported deaths at the hands of law enforcement, including people fatally shot, beaten, restrained and Tasered.

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Breonna Taylor death: former detective to plead guilty to federal charges

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Kelly Goodlett plea means prosecutors to secure first conviction in case that ignited widespread protests following March 2020 killing

A former Louisville detective is planning to plead guilty to federal charges filed against her in the police killing of Breonna Taylor, leaving prosecutors on the verge of securing their first conviction in a case that ignited months of racial justice protests in Kentucky’s largest city.

The ex-detective in question, Kelly Goodlett, is one of four white current and former Louisville police officers the US justice department last week charged with civil rights violations in the 2020 shooting death of Taylor, who was Black.

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Police officer who shot Breonna Taylor has pulled out of book deal

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Jonathan Mattingly is seeking a new publisher for his account of the shooting after Simon & Schuster refused to distribute it for Post Hill Press

One of the police officers involved in the shooting of Breonna Taylor has pulled out of his book deal with a conservative press four months after Simon & Schuster refused to distribute the title.

Jonathan Mattingly is one of the Louisville, Kentucky officers who shot Taylor in the raid in her home in March 2020, and was shot in the leg by Taylor’s boyfriend Kenneth Walker. A grand jury brought no charges against Louisville police last September for the killing.

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Simon & Schuster refuses to distribute book by officer who shot Breonna Taylor

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US publishing giant was due to distribute Jonathan Mattingly’s The Fight for Truth for rightwing outlet Post Hill Press

Simon & Schuster has said that it will not be distributing a book by one of the police officers who shot Breonna Taylor, after a small publisher whose books are distributed through S&S announced the book to widespread criticism.

The Fight for Truth: The Inside Story Behind the Breonna Taylor Tragedy is by Sgt Jonathan Mattingly, a Louisville, Kentucky, officer who shot Taylor and was wounded in the raid on her home in March last year. The book is being published by Post Hill Press, a small independent that specialises in “conservative politics” and Christian titles, and home to authors including far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer and the embattled Republican congressman Matt Gaetz.

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Louisville officer could face firing over Breonna Taylor raid

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Investigation finds officer violated procedures for preparation of search warrant that led detectives to Taylor’s apartment

Louisville police have taken steps that could result in the firing of an officer who sought the no-knock search warrant that led detectives to the apartment where Breonna Taylor was fatally shot.

Detective Joshua Jaynes has received a pre-termination letter, media outlets reported Tuesday. It came after a professional standards unit investigation found he had violated department procedures for preparation of a search warrant and truthfulness, his attorney said.

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Breonna Taylor: grand jury testimony reveals police did not search her home

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Hours of private proceeding were made public, with an officer telling the grand jury police announced their presence before shooting

In grand jury testimony made public on Friday, a law enforcement officer said police in Kentucky did not end up searching Breonna Taylor’s apartment on the day she was shot and killed by police who had arrived with a search warrant.

Police were carrying a narcotics warrant for Taylor’s Louisville apartment on 13 March. In a botched raid, they shot her after Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired at them on the assumption that they were intruders.

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Breonna Taylor: Kentucky attorney general agrees to release grand jury recordings

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Juror had sued to release transcripts, saying ‘absolute truth of how this matter was handled’ should be published

Kentucky’s attorney general has said he will release a recording of the grand jury proceedings in the Breonna Taylor case, after a judge ordered they be filed in court by noon on Wednesday. It follows an anonymous juror suing for them to be made public.

Attorney general, Daniel Cameron, said in a statement: “The Grand Jury is meant to be a secretive body. It’s apparent that the public interest in this case isn’t going to allow that to happen.”

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‘We are never safe’: Breonna Taylor’s family condemns Louisville police as protests enter third night

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Family expresses anger and disappointment after jury decided not to charge officers directly for killing of 26-year-old medical worker

Breonna Taylor’s family spoke out for the first time since a grand jury in Kentucky announced that it had decided not to charge three police officers directly in the killing of the 26-year-old medical worker in March.

Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, on Friday attended a press conference at a downtown Louisville park that has become a focus for protests and a makeshift memorial to Taylor, who was shot dead in her apartment after police barged in and fired a hail of bullets during a botched investigation.

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‘I hope you never know the pain’: Breonna Taylor’s family condemn Louisville police – video

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The family of Breonna Taylor heavily criticised Daniel Cameron, Kentucky’s attorney general, after a grand jury decided not to charge three police officers directly in the killing of the 26-year-old medical worker.

'I am an angry black woman,' Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, said in a statement read by her sister, Bianca Austin. 'Angry because our black women keep dying at the hands of police officers'.

The family's attorney, Benjamin Crump, called on Cameron to release the transcripts of the grand jury.

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Breonna Taylor’s family to speak after second night of protests for justice – live

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This is Joan Greve in Washington, taking over for Martin Belam.

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows attacked FBI Director Christopher Wray for not backing up Trump’s baseless claims about voter fraid.

With all due respect to Director Wray, he has a hard time finding emails in his own FBI, let alone figuring out whether there's any kind of voter fraud.” — White House Chief of Staff @MarkMeadows on FBI Dir. Christopher Wray saying he's seen no evidence of widespread voter fraud pic.twitter.com/W5PUfpnWCn

Tom McCarthy reports for us on how attorney general William Barr appears to see himself locked in a historic struggle against literal evil, and he appears to regard the upcoming election as the climactic battle.

To some observers, the attorney general appears to have also laid the groundwork for a further alarming step, one that would answer the question of what action the Trump administration is prepared to take if a contested election in November gives rise to large new protests.

In order for Trump to steal the election and then quell mass demonstrations – for that is the nature of the nightmare scenario now up for open discussion among current and former officials, academics, thinktankers and a lot of other people – Trump must be able to manipulate both the levers of the law and its physical enforcement.

Related: 'His abuses have escalated': Barr's kinship with Trump fuels election fears

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Breonna Taylor protesters march in Louisville as state representative among dozens arrested – video

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Protesters marched and chanted Breonna Taylor's name for a second night in Louisville, Kentucky, on Thursday – after a grand jury decided no police officer would be charged directly with her death in March.

On Thursday night, police made several arrests, including the Kentucky state representative, Attica Scott, a Democrat who has called for justice for Taylor, who shot dead in a botched raid

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Breonna Taylor decision: fresh protests expected across US

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Demonstrations occurred in several major US cities Wednesday after just one police officer charged with wanton endangerment

Fresh protests were expected in Louisville and elsewhere in America on Thursday as public anger and sadness continued to ripple out from the Kentucky city in the wake of the announcement that no police officers would be charged directly with the shooting death of Breonna Taylor in March.

The civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, speaking on behalf of Taylor’s relatives, said the family was “outraged, they were insulted and they were, mostly, offended” by the conclusion of a grand jury in Kentucky on Wednesday.

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Breonna Taylor: family attorney says wanton endangerment charge ‘doesn’t make sense’ – live updates

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The family of Breonna Taylor, alongside their lawyers, including attorney Ben Crump, will hold a press conference in Louisville tomorrow morning at 10:30 am, according to the Associated Press.

While Taylor’s family has been outspoken against police brutality, they have not spoken out publicly since the grand jury’s decision was announced Wednesday. Members of her family instead posted on social media about their frustration over the announcement. Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother, posted an illustration of Taylor with the caption “It’s still Breonna for me #thesystemfailedBreonna”

It’s still Breonna Taylor for me #ThesystemfailedBreonna

Donald Trump said that Medicare beneficiaries will soon be receiving a $200 card in the mail to help them afford their prescriptions.

“Nobody’s seen this before. These cards are incredible,” Trump said. “I will always take care of our wonderful senior citizens.”

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Breonna Taylor protests erupt across US – video

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Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in more than a dozen cities across the US after a grand jury decided not to directly charge police officers for the killing of Breonna Taylor, who was fatally shot by Louisville police as officers carried out a no-knock warrant in March.

Two police officers were shot in Louisville amid growing nationwide protests. It was confirmed both officers sustained non-life-threatening injuries on Wednesday evening

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Breonna Taylor killing: attorney general calls for calm as no officers directly charged – video

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The Kentucky attorney general, Daniel Cameron, urged protesters to make their voices heard peacefully after only one police officer involved in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor, Brett Hankison, was indicted by a grand jury. Hankinson faces three charges of wanton endangerment for endangering people living in nearby apartments, but he was not charged for shooting Taylor. The other two officers present, who also fired multiple times at Taylor in her apartment, were not charged

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Breonna Taylor decision: two officers shot in Louisville as protests erupt across US – live

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A few moments ago, a driver drove into a group of protestors. There were no serious injuries, Denver police have confirmed, and a man has been detained.

#DPD Officers are at Colfax & Broadway in response to a vehicle that drove into a protest occurring at that location. No injuries are reported. One male has been detained. #Denver. pic.twitter.com/Ge8zDLZTju

JUST IN: Video from a @denverpost reporter shows the moment a driver ran their car over a protester outside the Colorado State Capitol.

The protester, Kate, told @ShellyBradbury she was not badly hurt.

Denver police say a man has been detained. https://t.co/LNPZVmAiTO

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family of Breonna Taylor, has told CNN the indictment is, “like killing Breonna all over again.”

He called her death, “Legalized genocide of people of color, because no matter how much evidence we have, they always find a way to try to legally justify it.”

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Breonna Taylor family receive $12m settlement – video

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The family of Breonna Taylor has reached a $12m settlement with the city of Louisville, Kentucky, in a civil suit stemming from the fatal shooting by police of the 26-year-old inside her apartment in March.

The civil rights lawyer Ben Crumps called it a ‘landmark step on the journey to justice’ but called for charges to be brought immediately against the police officers who killed Breonna Taylor.

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Oprah Winfrey honors Breonna Taylor with September magazine cover

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  • First time magazine will not feature Winfrey on cover
  • Taylor, 26, was shot dead by police in own home in March

A portrait of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black emergency medical technician shot dead by police in her own home earlier this year, will appear on the cover of the latest issue of O, The Oprah Magazine.

It is the first time in the magazine’s 20-year history that the cover will not feature the magazine’s namesake: Oprah Winfrey.

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