By Christina Morales and Kevin Williams NYT News Service/Syndicate Stories
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Four years ago, thousands of demonstrators squeezed into Jefferson Square Park in downtown Louisville, Kentucky, to remember Breonna Taylor. They marched, they chanted, they gathered for vigils. Police officers broke up crowds with flash-bang grenades. It was the epicenter for racial justice protests in the city.
On Saturday, less than 24 hours after a jury convicted a former Louisville police officer of excessive force in the botched raid that killed Taylor, the park was empty. But one woman sitting across the street had not forgotten about her.
"I'm glad the family finally got justice," said Rocqual Pickett, a lifelong resident of Louisville who was waiting for a bus. "It was a long time coming."
There were no raucous rallies to be found in Louisville on Saturday, only quieter reflections. But Taylor was still on the minds of many residents, whose reactions to the verdict -- the first conviction of an officer who was directly involved in the raid -- ranged from relief for Taylor's family to empathy for the police.
The convicted former detective, Brett Hankison, who is white, fired 10 shots through the apartment of Taylor, a Black 26-year-old emergency room technician, in March 2020. Those shots did not kill Taylor. Two other officers, Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly, both also white, fired the fatal shots but were never charged. Prosecutors said they had been justified in their actions.
Hankison's use of deadly force "was unlawful and put Taylor in harm's way," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement after the verdict was announced Friday.
Hankison also went to trial last year facing federal civil rights charges, but a judge declared a mistrial when a jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict. He was previously acquitted of similar state charges.
In the first federal trial, Hankison, who fired through a window and sliding glass door covered by blinds, ultimately hitting a neighboring apartment, testified that he had been frightened and believed that someone in Taylor's home was shooting at his colleagues.
The officers were seeking evidence that Taylor's former boyfriend was selling drugs when they barged through her door. Her boyfriend at the time of the raid, Kenneth Walker, fired at the officers, saying later that he believed they were intruders, and one of the shots hit an officer in the leg. Cosgrove and Mattingly immediately returned fire and fatally shot Taylor.
Her death ignited protests across the country following the murder of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis. Protesters called for police reform and charges against the officers involved in the raid in Louisville.
Two other Louisville officers, Joshua Jaynes and Kyle Meany, were charged with federal civil rights and obstruction offenses for their roles in preparing and approving a falsified search warrant that led the officers to Taylor's apartment. A trial date has not been scheduled.
Kelly Goodlett, a former detective who is now retired, pleaded guilty in 2022 to conspiring with Jaynes to falsify the affidavit used to obtain the search warrant, and she is scheduled to be sentenced in April.
Some activists and residents said that Hankison's conviction was a step in the right direction but that more needed to be done to reform practices at the Louisville Metro Police Department.
"This is a big win for the family, but a drop in the bucket toward the social justice we are fighting for," Shameka Parrish-Wright, a member of the Louisville Metro Council, said Saturday. She was also the former co-chair of the racial justice group Kentucky Alliance.
Shawn Crook, 21, a lifelong resident of the city who was walking downtown with a few of his younger siblings Saturday, said the verdict did not give him much hope. He said the city needs more jobs for young Black men and more Black police officers.
"I don't know if I believe in justice anymore," he said.
Last year, an investigation by the Justice Department into the Louisville Police revealed a pattern of abusive and discriminatory behavior. Investigators found instances of police officers subduing residents with neck restraints, choke holds and even dog attacks, using excessive and escalating force. The report also said officers made unlawful stops and searches based on invalid warrants.
The city's mayor, Craig Greenberg, called the police tactics described in the report a "betrayal" and promised change.
The police department said Saturday in a statement on X that it had made significant improvements to its training, practices and policies since the raid.
The Justice Department said it was still negotiating with city and police officials in Louisville over a consent decree, an agreement between the parties that would create and enforce a road map for changes.
But not everyone in Louisville sees the police in the same way. "You don't shoot at the police and expect them not to return fire," said Scott Harris, 40, an automotive technician. He was sipping a beer at the County Line, a bar 15 miles away from Jefferson Square Park on the southern edge of Louisville.
Hankison faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced in March. Harris said Hankison should be disciplined but that life in prison was too much.
"Police have a tough job," Harris said, adding that bad police officers are found everywhere. "The police do the best with what they have."
Tamika Palmer, Taylor's mother, said in an interview Saturday that she had not given up hope for a conviction, even though the trial was wrenching at times.
"It was hard, it was heartbreaking. It was so many things," she said. But referring to the verdict, she said, "It was worth the sleepless nights to have that moment."
But, she added, "This is bigger than Breonna." Palmer said she hopes the verdict will serve as a takeaway for the police.