Lawyers for Breonna Taylor’s family say the United States Department of Justice recommendation that former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison be sentenced to one day in jail is “an insult.”
In a court filing in the Western District of Kentucky, the Justice Department said Hankison should receive “time served” credit “for the day he was booked and made his initial appearance before the court in this case.”
Hankison was part of a team who came to Taylor’s apartment in 2020 with a “no-knock” search warrant. Police were investigating a former boyfriend of Taylor’s who lived at a different address. Taylor, an unarmed Black woman, and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, were in bed when police broke into the apartment. Walker fired at what he thought were intruders breaking into the residence, striking Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly in his thigh. Mattingly initially sued Walker but dropped the case voluntarily in 2023.
Hankison and two other officers fired their guns a total of 32 times. Hankison fired from outside the apartment through a covered sliding glass door and window, hitting a neighbor’s apartment. It was later determined that officer Myles Cosgrove fired the shot that killed Taylor, whose death led to massive protests in Louisville and beyond.
Former Detective Joshua Jaynes and Sergeant Kyle Meany, 35, were also charged with federal civil rights and obstruction offenses. The Justice Department said they “falsified (the) search warrant affidavit that resulted in the warrant that led to Taylor’s death.” Another former officer, Detective Kelly Goodlett, pleaded guilty to “conspiring with Jaynes to falsify the affidavit used to obtain a search warrant for Taylor’s home and to cover up their actions after Taylor’s death,” the DOJ said in November.
People protest over the police killing of Breonna Taylor in 2020. (Photo by Sarah Ladd)
“Unfathomable”
In response to the DOJ filing, civil rights lawyers Ben Crump, Lonita Baker and Sam Aguiar, who represent Taylor’s family, issued a statement condemning the federal recommendation.
“Every American who believes in equal justice under the law should be outraged,” the lawyers said. “It is unfathomable that, after finally securing a conviction, the Department of Justice would seek a sentence so drastically below the federal guidelines.”
Hankison’s charge could result in a sentence of 11-14 years in prison.
“This sets a dangerous precedent,” the lawyers said. “When a police officer is found guilty of violating someone’s constitutional rights, there must be real accountability and justice. Recommending just one day in prison sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of Black Americans with near-total impunity.”
In 2022, Hankison was charged with depriving Taylor of her rights. Hankison’s trial ended in mistrial in 2023. In 2024, a jury found Hankison guilty of violating her civil rights but acquitted him of violating those of her neighbors.
Now, the DOJ said in its filing, “in light of the three trials of (Hankison) and the media attention given to each trial, it is no surprise that (he) has suffered from resulting stress and psychological problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, sleeping difficulties and related conditions.”
The filing also says the criticism of the Louisville police department has “generated significant media attention that exposes defendant to a heightened risk of assault while in custody.”
In addition to the one day of time served, the DOJ recommended a three-year supervised release and $100 fine.
“To be sure, the government acknowledges that its recommended sentence is significantly lower than the advisory guideline range,” the court document states. “But it is a black-letter principle of Fourth Amendment case law that an analysis of a police officer’s use of force must be ‘from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, including what the officer knew at the time, not with the 20/20 vision of hindsight.’”
The filing acknowledges that Hankison “fired blindly” into the apartment, “first through a patio door and then again through an adjacent bedroom window.”
The filing also says that though Hankison’s action “in these fraught circumstances was unreasonable given the benefit of hindsight, that unreasonable response did not kill or wound Breonna Taylor, her boyfriend, her neighbors, defendant’s fellow officers, or anyone else.”
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said he thinks Hankison’s “actions warrant a serious prison sentence.”
“Since the tragic death of Breonna Taylor, Louisville has taken significant steps toward healing and reform,” Greenberg said in a statement. “Our community has shown resilience and a shared commitment to justice. That work is far from over. I remain fully committed to advancing that work — to ensuring accountability and safety for all.”
Meanwhile, the family’s lawyers said that Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, is “left, once again, heartbroken and angry.”
Hankison’s sentencing is scheduled for July 21 before U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings in Louisville.
The family’s lawyers said Palmer “is holding out hope and praying that the judge will do what the DOJ has refused to do –– uphold the law, respect the jury’s verdict, and deliver true justice for Breonna Taylor.”
