A federal judge has dismissed felony charges against two former Louisville officers who were involved in the deadly raid of Breonna Taylor’s home, according to WDRB.
Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was shot and killed in her apartment during a flawed no-knock raid on March 13, 2020.
Detective Joshua Jaynes and Sgt. Kyle Meany were charged in 2022 with submitting a false affidavit to search Taylor’s home before the raid and creating a false cover story to avoid responsibility in her killing. Jaynes and Meany also faced felony charges for using a dangerous weapon to deprive Taylor of her Fourth Amendment right to defend herself against unreasonable search.
Jaynes and Meany, who weren’t present at the raid, were both fired by the Louisville Police Department.
On Thursday (August 22), U.S. District Judge Charles Simpson ruled there was no link between the warrantless entry of Taylor’s home and her death. Simpson said “the legal cause of Taylor’s death” was her boyfriend Kenneth Walker’s decision to open fire when officers burst into her home. Walker shot at officers, believing they were intruders, before police fired the lethal shots that killed Taylor.
Simpson dismissed the felony charges against Jaynes and Meany, meaning they will avoid life sentences. Meany still faces one charge of false statement to federal investigators, which is punishable by up to five years in prison. Jaynes could face 40 years if convicted on his remaining charges of two counts of falsification of records, conspiracy to falsify records, and witness tampering.
Former detectives Brett Hankison and Kelly Goodlett are also facing federal charges in connection to Taylor’s death. Goodlett pled guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
Following Thursday’s ruling, Taylor’s family released a statement saying they are planning to appeal.
“The family is obviously devastated,” Taylor’s family said. “Right now, we are just processing as prosecutors flush out next steps. We’ve been told they plan to appeal, and so we will wait for the appeals process to play out.”
