Breonna Taylor

Breonna Taylor (June 5, 1993 – March 13, 2020) was an African-American woman who was shot and killed while unarmed in her Louisville, Kentucky home by three police officers who entered under the auspices of a "no-knock" search warrant.

After Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) ex-detective Brett Hankison was acquitted of felony wanton endangerment of Taylor's neighbors at the state-level, Attorney-General Merrick Garland announced the Department of Justice was charging Hankison with the unconstitutional use of excessive force that violated Taylor's civil rights.

Three other officers, who were not present at the shooting, were also federally charged with conspiracy in falsifying evidence to procure the search warrant, and then covering it up.

Originally from Grand Rapids, Michigan, Taylor worked as an on call Emergency Room Technician and first responder in the local area at the time of her death.

Taylor was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on June 5, 1993, to Tamika Palmer and Everette "Skeeter" Taylor.

In 2008, she moved to Louisville, Kentucky with her mother and younger sister, Ju'Niyah.

Taylor attended Western High School, where she was an honor roll student who enjoyed mathematics.

Her teachers described her as a natural leader, who also was compassionate toward others.

Breonna held a variety of jobs during high school, including work at a local Steak 'n Shake restaurant.

In 2011, Taylor attended the University of Kentucky (Lexington) as a first-generation college student and returned to Louisville after one year.

According to her mother, Tamika, Breonna turned her focus on working to improve her credit score and also buying a car and eventually a home.

Taylor worked as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) from January to November 2016; by 2018, her certification had expired.

Her controversial death followed the murder of Ahmaud Arbery (February 23, 2020) and preceded the murder of George Floyd (May 25, 2020).

All three deaths spurred an outpouring of protests and became a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement in summer 2020.

Supporters adopted the motto #SayHerName in Taylor's memory bringing attention to Black women who are killed by police officers.

In 2020, she was working as a PRN at Norton Hospital and as an Emergency Room Technician at UofL Health (Jewish Hospital) and was regarded as an essential worker during the COVID-19 epidemic.

Taylor aspired to be a neonatal nurse, and planned to enroll at Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana in fall 2020.

On the evening of March 12, 2020, Taylor invited her aunt, 38 year old Bianca Austin, out for drinks.

Austin, a nursing student at the time, declined.

Breonna and her boyfriend Kenneth "Kenny" Walker III stayed home and watched movies instead.

After midnight, three plain clothes Louisville Metro police officers used a battering ram to enter Taylor's apartment in search of a suspect wanted for drug trafficking.

They were investigating a man, Jamarcus Glover, that Taylor had previously dated.

Taylor and Walker were in bed at the time.

Believing that they were being robbed, Walker, a licensed gun-owner, fired his gun at the officers, striking one of them, Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, in the leg.

The officers returned fire—32 shots total—striking Taylor several times, though she was unarmed.

One of the bullets was fatal, and Taylor's body was found in the hallway.

No drugs were ever found in the apartment.

The police say that they announced themselves prior to entering; Walker disputes their claim.

The officers were never charged; however, detectives Joshua Jaynes, Myles Cosgrove and Brett Hankison were all fired following an investigation.

Hankison ultimately was charged by the state with "wanton endangerment" and was found not guilty.

Although the family and local residents were outraged by the killing and the lack of formal charges for the officers, formal protests were limited due to restrictive shelter in place laws to reduce the impact of COVID-19.

Further, few churches were available for funeral services due to those same restrictions.

Tamika Palmer and the Taylor family filed a wrongful death lawsuit and received a $12 million settlement in September 2020.

In April 2021, Governor Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 4, known as "Breonna's Law," which limits the "no knock" policy statewide.

Following a series of short-term leaders at the helm of the LMPD during the aftermath of Taylor's death, Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel was named the city's first permanent Black female police chief in July 2023.

At the swearing-in ceremony, State Representative Keturah Herron remarked, "I cannot let this opportunity pass without mentioning Breonna Taylor. Her senseless death and the demands for justice that follow will create a movement whose impact will still be felt long after days and years."

Gwinn-Villaroel is the fifth person to hold the position after former police chief Steve Conrad was fired in 2020.

On June 11, 2020, the Louisville Metro Council banned no-knock search warrants; and by February 2022, other cities and states implemented similar restrictions.

For instance, Oregon, Connecticut, Virginia and Florida all banned the policy within their respective borders.

The deaths of Taylor and George Floyd, in addition to social justice protests throughout the United States, prompted President Joe Biden to designate Juneteenth (June 19) a federal holiday.