The former Kentucky police officer convicted in the deadly raid that ended Breonna Taylor’s life has been sentenced to 33 months in federal prison.
In case you missed it, Brett Hankison was found guilty by a federal jury last year for violating Taylor’s civil rights by using excessive force during the failed police operation. Although the charge carried a potential life sentence, the court handed down just under three years. Following his prison term, Hankison will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The firm sentencing came just days after a request from the Trump administration for Hankison to serve only one day in prison. That request sharply contrasted with the stance taken by federal prosecutors under President Joe Biden, who had pushed for a longer sentence.
Hankison is the only officer so far to be convicted in direct connection to the raid on Taylor’s home. Another former officer, Kelly Goodlett, admitted to conspiring with a colleague to falsify the warrant used to justify the raid and is expected to be sentenced next year.
Kenneth Walker, Taylor’s boyfriend, who was inside the apartment the night she was killed, said he was “grateful for the small piece of justice that we got.”
Taylor’s death in 2020 became a major catalyst for the Black Lives Matter movement, occurring shortly before the police killing of George Floyd.
The tragedy unfolded when officers in plain clothes executed a no-knock warrant at Taylor’s apartment in the early hours of the morning. Believing intruders were breaking in, Walker fired a single shot that struck Sgt John Mattingly in the leg. Police then unleashed 32 rounds in return.
Hankison alone fired 10 shots, none of which struck Taylor or Walker. However, several of his bullets tore through a neighboring apartment where a man, a pregnant woman, and a five-year-old child were sleeping.
During the trial, Hankison claimed he opened fire to protect fellow officers, but prosecutors argued that his actions were reckless and violated one of the core rules of using deadly force. “If they cannot see the person they’re shooting at, they cannot pull the trigger,” the prosecution said.
Outside the courthouse, protesters blocked streets while chanting Breonna Taylor’s name. Among those detained by police was Taylor’s aunt, Bianca Austin, as emotions ran high among supporters calling for deeper justice.