Earlier today (Sept. 23), Attorney General Daniel Cameron presented the reports of the grand jury in the case of Breonna Taylor’s death and announced that only one of the three officers involved would be indicted.
Taylor was fatally shot in her Louisville home back in March when officers raided into her home using a no-knock warrant. Former Detective Brett Hankinson was charged with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, but Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove were not indicted.
Social media users immediately reacted to the news, expressing their disappointment with the jury’s decision.
“It does not deal with the fact that the life of Breonna Taylor was taken. It does not address her being a victim or being killed. The value of her life is not at all addressed … When we say Black Lives Matter, this indictment says it does not matter,” Reverend Al Sharpton said, per MSNBC reporter Kyle Griffin.
“We live in a world where police can run guns blazing into Breonna Taylor’s apartment, kill her and not even have to stand trial for what they did. It’s just not right,” writer Parker Molloy tweeted in response to news. “Just 1 of the officers was charged with *anything?* That’s just shameful, fundamentally unfair.”
MSNBC Contributor Brittany Packnett Cunningham wrote, “Live on @MSNBC talking about these ridiculous ‘charges.’ If this is going to be our system, you show us what you think of Black lives when you don’t conduct business equitably. #Defund the police department that killed #BreonnaTaylor and replace it.”
“Replace the system after you’ve defunded and abolished it,” she continued. “I want to be clear.”
“Context – Had I kicked in Breonna Taylor’s door in Iraq and shot her to death, I would have been prosecuted as a war criminal unless she had a weapon pointed at me,” politician Mark Judson wrote. “Apparently, we should accept that there is more justice in war-torn Iraq than in America. No justice, no peace.”
Look below for more of the reactions to Taylor’s case.