The wait for an announcement regarding the investigation into the shooting death of Breonna Taylor at the hands of police in March is over, as Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron revealed the findings of a grand jury on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.
The grand jury returned a single indictment in the investigation, and none that directly had to do with Taylor’s death.
Of the three officers involved in Taylor’s death in the March raid, only one faces any criminal charges.
Former detective Brett Hankison, who was fired in June, faces three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment for for firing his weapon indiscriminately during the raid, putting the lives of those in neighboring apartments at risk, the Associated Press reported. The other officers involved — Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove — were not indicted.
Chesey Napper, Taylor’s neighbor, filed a lawsuit against the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department in May, saying that bullets had nearly struck a man in her home and she was pregnant and had a child there as well at the time, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal .
In explaining the decision to decline filing charges against the officers directly in Taylor’s death, Cameron said he and investigators simply pursued “the truth.”
Cameron indicated that the investigation showed the officers had returned fire on Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, making their actions justifiable and homicide charges not applicable. Walker has said that he didn’t know police, who were executing a no-knock warrant as part of a narcotics investigation, were at the door.
The warrant was connected to a person who did not live at the residence, and no narcotics were found there. Taylor, who had been asleep at the time of the raid, was shot five times and died in her hallway.
“Justice is not often easy and does not fit the mold of public opinion. And it does not conform to shifting standards,” Cameron said, according to the *Courier-Journal*.
“I know that not everyone will be satisfied with the charges we’ve reported today.
“My team set out to investigate the circumstances surrounding Ms. Taylor’s death. We did it with a singular goal in mind: pursuing the truth. Kentucky deserves no less. The city of Louisville deserves no less. If we simply act on emotion or outrage, there is no justice. Mob justice is not justice.”
Officials in Louisville braced for the worst ahead of the announcement.
On Tuesday, Louisville girded for a rough night — if not more — as the mayor, Greg Fischer, declared a state of emergency, barricades were erected downtown, and businesses boarded up their windows, USA Today reported .
“Our goal is ensuring space and opportunity for potential protesters to gather and express their First Amendment rights after the announcement,” Fischer said in a statement .
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On September 15, the city of Louisville announced a $12 million settlement with Taylor’s family.
The settlement also includes commitments to police reforms, the Associated Press reported. No-knock warrants were also banned by Louisville’s city council.
Walker has also filed a civil suit over the shooting, seeking immunity from prosecution and arguing he is the victim of police misconduct. Charges of attempted murder of a police officer and assault against Walker were dropped earlier this year.
