Judge Declares Mistrial In Case Of Former Officer Charged In Breonna Taylor Raid

Forbes Business Breaking Judge Declares Mistrial In Case Of Former Officer Charged In Breonna Taylor Raid Antonio Pequeño IV Forbes Staff I cover breaking news. Following Click to save this article. You’ll be asked to sign into your Forbes account.

Nov 16, 2023, 07:58pm EST Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline U. S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings declared a mistrial in the civil rights case of former police officer Brett Hankison, who was involved in a police raid that killed 26-year-old Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky, according to multiple reports , a decision that came after the jury failed to reach a verdict on the charges against Hankison.

Hankison was fired from his job as a police officer after the raid. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, .

. . [+] Pool) Copyright 2022 The Associated Press.

All rights reserved. Key Facts The jury couldn’t reach a consensus after days of deliberations that began Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing the Justice Department. Hankison was charged with use of excessive force that violated the civil rights of Taylor, her boyfriend and her neighbors, with prosecutors claiming he blindly fired 10 shots into her apartment—though Hankison pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The mistrial could result in a retrial of Hankison, though federal prosecutors would determine whether to pursue another trial at a later date, according to the Associated Press . Jennings reported “elevated voices” that came from the jury room during deliberations and that court security visited the room, the AP reported, noting the jurors eventually became deadlocked on Hankison’s counts. Tangent Hankison also fought state charges last year accusing him of wanton endangerment.

A jury found the former police officer not guilty of endangering Taylor’s neighbors during the raid, which resulted in some bullets flying into a neighboring apartment. Key Background Prosecutors argued Monday that Hankison couldn’t properly see a target despite firing into the building, alleging Hankison knew what he did was wrong, according to the AP. Hankison and his defense have claimed the former police officer believed someone inside Taylor’s apartment was shooting at other officers and moving forward after injuring one, arguing he had to make a split-second decision.

Hankison is the only officer involved in the raid to face state charges, though four officers including him were charged by the Justice Department last year. Former detective Kelly Goodlett pleaded guilty last year to federal charges of falsifying a search warrant and trying to cover up the botched raid afterward. The death of Taylor, an unarmed Black woman who was sleeping in the apartment, was one of several killings that prompted a national racial reckoning in 2020 as demonstrators took to the streets in cities across the country to protest police violence against Black Americans.

Further Reading Mistrial declared after federal jury deadlocks in trial of ex-officer in deadly Breonna Taylor raid (AP) Mistrial Declared in Case Against Former Officer Involved in Breonna Taylor Raid (WSJ) Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn . Send me a secure tip . Antonio Pequeño IV Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.