| Submit your comments on this article | |
| -War on Police- | |
| Ex-officer Brett Hankison guilty in death of Breonna Taylor | |
| 2024-11-03 | |
[BBC] A former police in the US state of Kentucky has been found guilty of violating the civil rights of Breonna Taylor, a black woman killed in her own home during a botched raid four years ago.
But the jury also found him not guilty on another charge of violating the civil rights of one of Taylor's neighbours. It was the third time Hankison had stood trial in the case. The verdict marks the first time any officer has been convicted in the deadly raid on 13 March 2020 that made Taylor's name a rallying cry during the racial justice unrest of that year. Prosecutors wanted Hankison to be immediately taken into custody, but their request was rejected by the judge, reports the local newspaper. The jury of five white men, one black man and six white women began their deliberations on Wednesday. The indictment accused Hankison of depriving Taylor of the right to be free from unreasonable seizures and depriving her neighbours of the right to be free from the deprivation of liberty without due process of law. He fired 10 times into her apartment, in order, he said, to protect fellow officers as Taylor's boyfriend opened fire when officers broke down the door. Hankison took the stand over two days of testimony during the retrial, telling the jurors he was "trying to stay alive, trying to keep my partners alive". He was the first of the four officers charged in the case to face a jury. Another former officer, Kelly Goodlett, pleaded guilty to falsifying the search warrant for Taylor’s home. The remaining two officers had their federal charges thrown out by a judge earlier this year. The US Justice Department recently indicted the two on new charges. Taylor was killed after officers wearing plain clothes executed a "no-knock" search warrant at her home. They burst into her apartment in the early morning hours while she and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, were asleep. Authorities believed Taylor's former boyfriend was using her home to hide narcotics. Mr Walker fired a single shot when they knocked the door down, hitting one officer, Sgt John Mattingly, in the leg. Mr Walker said the officers did not announce themselves as police, and he thought they were intruders. The three officers returned fire, shooting 32 bullets into the flat. Another officer fired the shot that killed Taylor, but prosecutors said his use of deadly force was justified because Walker had opened fire first. None of Hankison's bullets hit anyone, but they did enter a neighbouring property, where a pregnant woman, a five-year-old and a man had been sleeping. A subsequent police report contained errors, including listing Taylor's injuries as "none" and saying no force was used to enter, when a battering ram had been used. Hankison was fired from Louisville Metro Police Department in June 2020. His previous federal case last year ended in a mistrial when the jury told the judge it could not reach a unanimous verdict. He was previously tried by a Kentucky state jury in March 2022, and acquitted on three counts of felony wanton endangerment. Taylor's family and Walker both received settlements from the city over the incident. A series of police reforms also were introduced in Louisville. Hankison is due to be sentenced on 12 March next year. Related: Breonna Taylor 09/04/2024 DOJ announces charges against senior Hamas leaders over October 7 attack Breonna Taylor 08/28/2024 Harley-Davidson failed at 'Business 101' as 'elitist jerks' rule boardrooms, says former Levi's exec Breonna Taylor 08/24/2024 Judge rules Breonna Taylor's boyfriend caused her death, dismisses some charges against ex-officers Related: Brett Hankison 12/31/2023 Moment Louisville Metro Police officers filmed themselves throwing SLUSHIES at unsuspecting residents after slowing their cop car down to sneak up on victims Brett Hankison 11/17/2023 Former Louisville cop Brett Hankison's civil rights trial over fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor ends in MISTRIAL after jury fails to reach a verdict Brett Hankison 03/04/2022 Office in Breonna Taylor case acquittes all counts Related: Louisville: 2024-10-28 Palestinian driver attempts to ram, stab soldiers in West Bank Louisville: 2024-08-24 Judge rules Breonna Taylor's boyfriend caused her death, dismisses some charges against ex-officers Louisville: 2024-08-14 Report on Violent Crime Falling in Major U.S. Cities Does Not Include NYC | |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #4 Nothing about the chump who sent them to the wrong address... |
| Posted by: Helmuth, Speaking for Cloter9531 2024-11-03 08:36 |
| #3 #1 SCOTUS over ruled the Constitution on that one. It's all legalese. The Founders intended for it to be about the specific offense, all inclusive. Now days, you violate 23 different laws for the same specific offense. It all started rolling with Rodney King. After the officers were acquitted in a state court, the Feds prosecuted them. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2024-11-03 07:47 |
| #2 Mistrial is not a verdict. |
| Posted by: Frank G 2024-11-03 06:42 |
| #1 His previous federal case last year ended in a mistrial when the jury told the judge it could not reach a unanimous verdict. Whatever happened to "double jeopardy"? |
| Posted by: Grom the Reflective 2024-11-03 01:42 |