LEXINGTON, Ky. — Nearly 900 days after Breonna Taylor was shot and killed by police in March 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice announced federal charges against four current and former Louisville police officers for their alleged roles in her death.
Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother, said the announcement of charges against the four officers caused people to learn what she and others had been saying for more than two years: that the police were responsible for her death.
“I have waited 874 days for today,” Palmer said. I couldn’t have done it without some of you all. Some of you all have been out here have tearing me down, you have harassed me, some of you have carried me, but all of that has made me and I am OK with that.”
She said Thursday was long overdue.
She, supporters and her attorneys gathered outside the Louisville courthouse Thursday to share statements about the DOJ’s announcement of the arrest of Kelly Goodlett, Kyle Meany, Brett Hankison and Joshua Jaynes. The officers have been charged with civil rights offenses, unconstitutional use of force, obstruction and conspiracy, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
“This day is about (Tamika), her family,” Ben Crump, an attorney for Taylor’s family, told reporters and others gathered outside the Louisville courthouse Thursday. “It’s about Breonna, and all the other Breonnas across America.
“The Black women who have been denied justice throughout the history of this country when they have been abused, assaulted, murdered, raped and disregarded. Because of Breonna Taylor, we can say this is a day that Black women saw equal justice in the United States of America.”
Lonita Baker, co-counsel for Taylor’s family and president of the National Bar Association, said that by charging the officers, the DOJ was acknowledging “police officers had no right to be at Breonna’s apartment in the first place.”
“We have been saying they lied,” Baker said. “We have been saying Breonna was not involved, and we have been saying they should not have been at Breonna’s home. We have been saying that officers should be held accountable for Breonna Taylor’s murder. And today, is the first day towards getting that justice.”
Members of Taylor’s family and legal team also called for the arrest of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron. Cameron is running for governor and he handled a grand jury investigation into Taylor’s death. The state-level investigation resulted in charges for one officer, Hankison, but he was ultimately found not guilty on wanton endangerment charges.
Cameron was accused of misrepresenting the findings of the grand jury assembled to weigh whether any charges should be filed against the Louisville police officers involved in Taylor’s death. Three unnamed grand jurors and “other concerned citizens” filed an impeachment petition against Cameron in January 2021.
“Thank God Attorney General Daniel Cameron did not get the last word in justice for Taylor,” Crump said.
Civil rights activist Tamika Mallory, who moved to Louisville from New York to help pursue justice for Taylor, called for the arrest of Daniel Cameron, who she said lied about Taylor’s death.
“Daniel Cameron needs to be arrested,” she said. “He needs to be arrested because he is a liar, and he is an obstructionist. Not only did he lie, not only did he illegally ... botch the investigation, but he also damaged the lives of jurors who saw the need to come forward and say that everything that everything that was being presented was a lie.”
Sadiqa Reynolds, the CEO and president of the Louisville Urban League, also called for Cameron's arrest and said that he should not be reelected.
“There is an attorney general who said, ‘There is nothing to see here,’ and ‘We did the best that we could.’ I want to tell all Black people, and all people that your vote matters because if we did not have this president, of this United States, if we did not have this attorney general of this country, we would not have we would not have these four indictments,” Reynolds said.
She said the shock was not that this injustice happened, but that it was exposed, and she criticized the relationship between prosecutors and investigators.
“We know the whole story now and it is on us to hold everyone accountable, and someone is dead,” she said.
Palmer said Cameron was wrong.
“You don’t deserve to be where you are, and you need to go,” Palmer said. “If we don’t continue to eat him, one of y’all is on the menu next. He was dead wrong. It didn’t start with him, but he had the option to do the right thing and he chose not to. So again, I have waited 874 days for today.”
Cameron addressed the federal charges in a series of tweets Thursday, saying that his office “supports the impartial administration of justice,” but adding that he didn’t think people should “conflate what happened today with the state law investigation undertaken by our office.”
“Our primary task was to investigate whether the officers who executed the search warrant were criminally responsible for Ms. Taylor’s death under state law,” Cameron said in a tweet. “At the conclusion of our investigation, our prosecutors submitted the information to a state grand jury, which ultimately resulted in criminal charges being brought against Mr. Brett Hankison for wanton endangerment.
“I’m proud of the work of our investigators & prosecutors.”
Cameron said he felt some were trying to use the announcement of the federal charges to “divide Kentuckians.”
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said in a statement that the charges were a critical step in the process of justice for Breonna Taylor and her family.
“While we cannot reverse her tragic death, we can and must continue to pursue justice for her. I deeply appreciate the hard work of the federal government to tirelessly pursue this case,” Fischer said. “And, while I know some may feel that this process has taken too long, as I have said from the beginning there can be no shortcuts to due process, no shortcuts to justice.
“Today is an important day in that process and in the journey toward justice. And, I pledge to my city that my administration will continue to be unflagging in our work to pursue this justice, and create a more equitable, safe and compassionate city for all Louisvillians.”
Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., who represents Kentucky’s 3rd Congressional District, said it was “about damn time” charges were filed and also criticized Cameron.
“Justice delayed is justice denied,” Yarmuth said in a tweet Thursday. “But it’s never too late to do the right thing. Despite Daniel Cameron’s best efforts, accountability is finally coming for those responsible for Breonna Taylor’s death.”
Kentucky Rep. Charles Booker also commented and tweeted that this justice was long overdue.
Gov. Andy Beshear said he has not had time to read the indictments but said the allegations against the former and current police officers are serious.
“Falsifying an affidavit is a serious charge and it ought to be taken seriously,” Beshear said.
When asked if he agreed with those critical of Cameron’s investigation of the events surrounding Taylor’s death, Beshear said: “I need more information but a false affidavit could also be perjury under state law.”
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(Herald-Leader reporter Beth Musgrave contributed to this story.)
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