September 23 Breonna Taylor news

By Fernando Alfonso III, Melissa Macaya, Meg Wagner, Veronica Rocha, Mike Hayes, Jessie Yeung, Tara John and Ed Upright, CNN

Updated 9:01 p.m. ET, September 24, 2020
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2:36 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Kentucky attorney general defends length of investigation

From CNN's Elizabeth Joseph

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said his office’s investigation took so long because of how thorough it was. 

“As late as Friday we were still interviewing people in this case,” he said, adding the grand jury presentation began the following Monday.

Breonna Taylor, her family, officers, Louisville and the Commonwealth of Kentucky deserved a thorough investigation, he said.

The length of the investigation was a reflection “of how important it was to get this right,” he said.

In the news conference, Cameron also said his office's investigation started "from scratch" as there was no body cam footage related to the case.

Watch here:

2:28 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

ACLU Kentucky calls Taylor case decision "latest miscarriage of justice"

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky responded in a tweet to the indictment of one officer in the Breonna Taylor case.

Read the statement:

“LMPD Detective Brett Hankison was charged with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment for shooting blindly into apartments neighboring Breonna Taylor’s. 
No charges were filed against LMPD Officers Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly. None of the charges against Detective Hankison were directly related to Breonna Taylor’s death.
This is the latest miscarriage of justice in our nation’s long history of denying that Black lives matter. Once again, a prosecutor has refused to hold law enforcement accountable for killing a young Black woman.
 Breonna Taylor should still be alive today.”
2:45 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Officers did knock at Taylor's home, attorney general says

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said his office determined the police officers knocked and announced their presence at Breonna Taylor’s home when she was killed.

That determination was made based on statements by other officers who were present at the location, and that information was corroborated by another civilian witness who was nearby at the time, he said.

Some background: Taylor was killed in March. The officers broke down the door to her apartment while executing a late-night, "no-knock" warrant in a narcotics investigation on March 13.

Following her death, the Louisville city council in June passed Breonna's Law, which banned no-knock warrants and requires officers serving search warrants to wear body cameras.

Watch here:

2:20 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Kentucky attorney general vows to pursue charges announced today

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron vowed to "vigorously prosecute" the criminal charges announced against one of the three officers involved in Breonna Taylor's case.

A grand jury announced earlier today it was indicting former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison with three counts of wanton endangerment of the first degree.

Cameron also announced that he was creating "a task force to review the process for securing securing and executing search warrants in Kentucky." Members of the public, law enforcement, elected officials, defense attorneys and representatives from the judiciary will be included in the task force, he said.

"I believe having a top-to-bottom review of the search warrant process is necessary to determine if changes are required and establish the best practices," he said.

Watch here:

2:23 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

"Sometimes, the criminal law is not adequate to respond to a tragedy," Kentucky attorney general says

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron called Breonna Taylor's death "a tragedy" and said that "sometimes, the criminal law is not adequate," he said today during a news conference in Louisville.

"This is a tragedy. And sometimes, the criminal law is not adequate to respond to a tragedy. And I fully acknowledge that and I know many that are watching today and those listening recognize that as well," Cameron said. "But the response is that the grand jury was given all of the evidence, presented all the information, and ultimately, made the determination that Detective [Brett] Hankison was the one to be indicted."

Watch here:

2:18 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Kentucky attorney general: If convicted, Hankison faces up to 5 years in prison for each count

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that the grand jury voted to return an indictment for three felony counts of wanton endangerment against former Louisville detective Brett Hankison.

Cameron said that if convicted, Hankison "can serve up to five years for each count."

"My office is prepared to prove these charges at trial," Cameron said. "However, it's important to note he is presumed innocent until proven guilty."

Watch here:

2:13 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Kentucky attorney general: Other officers on the scene were "justified in their use of force"

Following the indictment of one officer involved in the shooting of Breonna Taylor, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said the other two officers on the scene were "justified in their use of force."

Moments ago, a Jefferson County grand jury charged former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison with three counts of wanton endangerment of the first degree.

Officers Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly were not indicted. Cameron said their actions the night Taylor died were justified after Kenneth Walker, Taylor's boyfriend, fired first.

"Our investigation found that Mattingly and Cosgrove were justified in their use of force after having been fired upon by Kenneth Walker," Cameron said.

An FBI crime lab determined Cosgrove fired the shot that killed Taylor. "Six bullets struck Ms. Taylor and... only one shot was fatal," Cameron said, adding she would have died within "a few seconds to two minutes."

Watch here:

1:58 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Kentucky attorney general: My job was "to put emotions aside and investigate the facts"

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron CNN

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron began his announcement on the Breonna Taylor case by again issuing condolences to her family.

"Every day this family wakes up to the realization that someone they loved is no longer with them," he said.

He said the pain many across the country feel is "understandable."

"In this case, a human life was lost. We can not forget that," Cameron said.

However, Cameron said his job required him to "investigate the facts."

"My job as the special prosecutor in this case was to put emotions aside and investigate the facts to determine if criminal violations of state law resulted in the loss of Ms. Taylor's life," he added.

Moments ago, a Jefferson County grand jury has charged former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison, one of the three officers involved in Taylor's case, with three counts of wanton endangerment of the first degree.

Watch:

2:18 p.m. ET, September 23, 2020

Crowd marches in Louisville after grand jury announcement

rowd of demonstrators started marching in downtown Louisville after a grand jury announced that one of the three officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor was indicted.

CNN's Shimon Prokupecz, who was on the scene, said they were waiting for the attorney general's news conference, "so he could explain himself and how he proceeded with this case, why he chose the route he chose."

"The most important point, I think, is that the people here are not happy with this decision by the attorney general, or this decision by the grand jury, which did not go far enough," Prokupecz said.

He noted that there was no police presence.

"I think the police sort of have said that they were going to allow protesters to come to this area, to peacefully protest," Prokupecz said.