HOUSTON — Former Louisville Police Department officer Brett Hankison is charged with three counts of wanton endangerment following his alleged role in the deadly shooting incident involving Breonna Taylor and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker.
Many people disagree with the findings of the grand jury and believe the other officers involved should be charged with crimes. They also feel that Hankison should be charged with crimes related to Taylor’s death.
Some of the evidence presented to members of the grand jury was shared publicly Wednesday by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron.
Prosecutors say the officers identified themselves before entering Taylor’s apartment.
“The evidence shows the officers both knocked and announced their presence at the apartment,” Cameron said during a press conference. “The warrant was not served as a no-knock warrant."
Cameron says one neighbor was able to corroborate the story and heard the officers identify themselves before entering the apartment.
Several other neighbors reportedly deny hearing such an announcement and there is no police body camera video.
Investigators said Walker was the first to fire a gun, not police officers.
“Mr. Walker admitted that he fired one shot and was the first to shoot,” Cameron said.
Cameron says Walker was standing in a hallway with his gun drawn with Taylor at his side.
Officers opened fire, shooting Walker and Taylor, Cameron said.
“It’s obviously a very tragic and sad circumstance, and Ms. Taylor obviously didn’t deserve to die,” said South Texas College of Law criminal law professor Kenneth Williams. “It’s very unfortunate, but I just don’t think there are any grounds for bringing a homicide charge.”
Williams says he believes the grand jury made a reasonable decision based on the evidence it was given. Williams says the charges are based on the officer’s allegedly indiscriminate gunfire which led to some of his bullets going through the wall of a neighboring apartment unit and nearly hitting a woman.
Williams says prosecutors were never able to prove which officer fired the bullet that killed Taylor. He says if it ever was found to be the other two officers, they would likely not be charged with her death either.
“Then that would mean they’re acting in self-defense,” Williams said. “So they don’t know that this third officer, who’s been charged, they can’t determine that it was his bullet that killed Ms. Taylor, and that’s why he hasn’t been charged with any kind of homicide.”
The case may sound similar to the botched Harding Street drug raid in Houston.
Officers were serving a no-knock warrant which became a shootout between the couple and police.
Former HPD narcotics officer Gerald Goines is charged with two counts of murder.
Professor Williams says the murder charge in that case stems from the prosecutors’ belief that police were not at the home lawfully.
Prosecutors say Goines and others falsified information in order to obtain the warrant.
Williams says if officers are not there legally, then they cannot claim self-defense.
“If they falsified the information to obtain the warrant, then that meant they had no right to be in the house,” Williams said. “That would really undermine their whole self-defense claim.”