Dismay over Breonna Taylor spills into America’s streets

Police and protesters converge during a demonstration, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020, in Louisville, Ky. A grand jury has indicted one officer on criminal charges six months after Breonna Taylor was fatally shot by police in Kentucky. The jury presented its decision against fired officer Brett Hankison Wednesday to a judge in Louisville, where the shooting took place. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — Anger, frustration and sadness over the decision not to charge Kentucky police officers for Breonna Taylor’s death poured into America’s streets as protesters lashed out at a criminal justice system they say is stacked against Black people. Violence seized the demonstrations in her hometown of Louisville as gunfire rang out and wounded two police officers.

Activists, celebrities and everyday Americans have been calling for charges since Taylor, an emergency medical worker, was shot multiple times by white officers after one of them was shot while bursting into her home during a narcotics investigation in March. The officers had a no-knock warrant but the investigation showed they announced themselves before entering, said state Attorney General Daniel Cameron, a Republican and the state’s first Black top prosecutor.

A grand jury returned three charges of wanton endangerment Wednesday against fired Officer Brett Hankison over shooting into a home next to Taylor’s with people inside.

Hundreds of demonstrators chanted Taylor’s name and marched in cities including New York, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Las Vegas and Portland, Oregon. People gathered in downtown Chicago’s Millennium Park, chanting demands for justice as drivers on Michigan Avenue honked their horns. Police in Atlanta unleashed chemical agents and made arrests after some protesters tried to climb on a SWAT vehicle. In Minnesota and Wisconsin, marchers peacefully blocked highway traffic.

In Louisville, police said they arrested 127 people after what began as peaceful protests. Officers declared an unlawful assembly after they said fires were set in garbage cans and several vehicles were damaged. A police statement also described the “looting” of several stores. Interim Police Chief Robert Schroeder said a suspect was detained in the shooting of two officers, who are expected to recover from their wounds.

Taylor’s case has exposed the wide gulf between public opinion on justice for those who kill Black Americans and the laws under which those officers are charged, which regularly favor police and do not often result in steep criminal accusations.

Carmen Jones has protested in downtown Louisville every day for nearly three months. She said she feels despair after the grand jury’s decision and doesn’t know what’s coming.

“We’re tired of being hashtags. We’re tired of paying for history in our blood and our bodies and being told to respond to this violence and aggression with peace,” she said. “We did it the Martin way for the entire summer, and it got us nowhere. Maybe it’s time to do things the Malcolm way.”

Jones said she still hopes their demonstrations will lead to systemwide change in the U.S., but the decision in Taylor’s case makes her feel like her life doesn’t matter in America.

“I don’t think I’ll sleep the same ever again, cause it would happen to any of us,” she said. “The system does not care about Black people. The system chews Black people up and spits us out.”

Along with George Floyd, a Black man killed by police in Minneapolis in May, Taylor’s name became a rallying cry during nationwide protests that called attention to entrenched racism and demanded police reform. Her image is painted on streets, emblazoned on protest signs and silk-screened on T-shirts worn by celebrities.

The FBI is still investigating potential violations of federal law in connection with the raid at Taylor’s home on March 13.

After the announcement, Ben Crump, a lawyer for Taylor’s family, denounced the decision as “outrageous and offensive.” Protesters shouting, “No justice, no peace!” took to the streets, while others sat quietly and wept.

Morgan Julianna Lee, a high school student in Charlotte, North Carolina, watched the announcement at home.

“It’s almost like a slap in the face,” the 15-year-old said by phone. “If I, as a Black woman, ever need justice, I will never get it.”

Authorities themselves expressed dismay. At a news conference, Cameron, the attorney general, said, “Criminal law is not meant to respond to every sorrow and grief.”

“But my heart breaks for the loss of Miss Taylor. … My mother, if something was to happen to me, would find it very hard,” he added, choking up.

However, Cameron said the officers acted in self-defense after Taylor’s boyfriend fired at them. Kenneth Walker told police he heard knocking but didn’t know who was coming in and fired in self-defense.

The warrant was connected to a suspect who did not live there, and no drugs were found inside. The city has since banned such warrants.

“According to Kentucky law, the use of force by (Officers Jonathan) Mattingly and (Myles) Cosgrove was justified to protect themselves,” Cameron said. “This justification bars us from pursuing criminal charges in Miss Breonna Taylor’s death.”

President Donald Trump read a statement from Cameron, saying “justice is not often easy.” He later tweeted that he was “praying for the two police officers that were shot.”

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, called for policing reform.

Biden says that while a federal investigation continues, “we do not need to wait for the final judgment of that investigation to do more to deliver justice for Breonna.” He said the country should start by addressing excessive force, banning chokeholds and overhauling no-knock warrants.

“We must never stop speaking Breonna’s name as we work to reform our justice system, including overhauling no-knock warrants,” Harris said on Twitter.

Hankison was fired on June 23. The three wanton endangerment charges he faces each carry a sentence of up to five years. A termination letter said he had violated procedures by showing “extreme indifference to the value of human life” when he “wantonly and blindly” fired his weapon.

CNN reported that his attorney, David Leightty, declined to comment.

Last week, the city settled a lawsuit against the three officers brought by Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, agreeing to pay her $12 million and enact police reforms.