4 LMPD officers federally charged in connection to Breonna Taylor raid
I’M JENNIFER BAILEYS. WE ARE CUTTING IN FOR LATE BREAKING NEWS. THE US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE IS MAKING AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT A CIVIL RIGHTS MATTER. SOURCES TELL WLKY IT INVOLVES THE KILLING OF BREONNA TAYLOR DURING AN LAPD RAID IN 2020. WE HAVE CONFIRMED THE FBI HAS ARRESTED FORMER OFFICER JOSHUA JAYNES. LET’S LISTEN IN NOW. CONSPIRACY IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL. USE OF FORCE AND OBSTRUCTION OFFENSES. THE FOUR DEFENDANTS WERE CHARGED THROUGH TWO SEPARATE INDICTMENTS AND ONE INFORMATION. I’M GOING TO BEGIN TODAY BY DISCUSSING THE CIVIL RIGHTS OFFENSES THAT STEM FROM THE FALSIFICATION OF A SEARCH WARRANT. WE ALLEGE THAT THESE OFFENSES RESULTED IN MS. . TAYLOR’S DEATH. THESE CHARGES FOCUS ON THE CONDUCT OF THE LOUISVILLE METRO POLICE DEPARTMENT’S PLACE BASED INVESTIGATIONS UNIT, AND THE FIRST INDICTMENT FILED TODAY. WE ALLEGE THAT IN EARLY 2020, THAT UNIT WAS INVESTIGATING SUSPECTED DRUG TRAFFICKING IN THE WEST END OF LOUISVILLE. ON MARCH 12, 2020, OFFICERS FROM THAT UNIT SOUGHT FIVE SEARCH WARRANTS. THEY CLAIMED WERE RELATED TO THE SUSPECTED DRUG TRAFFICKING. FOUR OF THOSE WARRANTS TARGETED PROPERTIES IN THE WEST END. OR THAT ACTIVITY WAS ALLEGEDLY OCCURRING. A FIFTH SEARCH WARRANT WAS FOR BRIANNA TAYLOR’S HOME, WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY TEN MILES AWAY FROM THE WEST END. THE FEDERAL CHARGES ANNOUNCED TODAY ALLEGE THAT MEMBERS OF THE PLACE BASED INVESTIGATIONS UNIT FALSIFIED THE AFFIDAVIT USED TO OBTAIN THE SEARCH WARRANT OF MS.. TAYLOR’S HOME THAT THIS ACT VIOLATED FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS AND THAT THOSE VIOLATIONS RESULTED IN MS.. TAYLOR’S DEATH. SPECIFICALLY, WE ALLEGE THAT MS.. TAYLOR’S FOURTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS WERE VIOLATED WHEN DEFENDANTS JOSHUA JAYNES KYLE MEANY AND KELLY GOODLATTE SOUGHT A WARRANT TO SEARCH MS.. TAYLOR’S HOME, KNOWING THAT THE OFFICERS LACKED PROBABLE CAUSE FOR THE SEARCH. WE ALLEGE THAT THE DEFENDANTS KNEW THE AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF THAT WARRANT CONTAINED FALSE AND MISLEADING INFORMATION AND THAT IT COMMITTED MATERIAL INFORMATION, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE AFFIDAVIT FALSELY CLAIMED THAT OFFICERS HAD VERIFIED THAT THE TARGET OF THE ALLEGED DRUG TRAFFICKING OPERATION HAD RECEIVED PACKAGE WAS AT MS.. TAYLOR’S ADDRESS. IN FACT, DEFENDANTS JAYNES AND GOODLATTE KNEW THAT WAS NOT TRUE. WE FURTHER ALLEGE THAT DEFENDANTS JAYNES AND MEANY KNEW THE SEARCH WARRANT WOULD BE CARRIED OUT BY ARMED LMPD OFFICERS AND THAT CONDUCTING THAT SEARCH COULD CREATE A DANGEROUS SITUATION FOR ANYONE WHO HAPPENED TO BE IN MS.. TAYLOR’S HOME. AS OUTLINED IN THE CHARGING DOCUMENTS, THE OFFICERS WHO ULTIMATELY CARRIED OUT THE SEARCH AT MS.. TAYLOR’S DEPARTMENT WERE NOT INVOLVED IN THE DRAFTING OF THE WARRANT AND WERE UNAWARE OF THE FALSE AND MISLEADING STATEMENTS THAT CONTAINED WHEN THOSE OFFICERS EXECUTED THE SEARCH WARRANT. MS. . TAYLOR WAS AT HOME WITH ANOTHER PERSON WHO WAS IN LAWFUL POSSESSION OF A HANDGUN. WHEN OFFICERS BROKE DOWN THE DOOR TO MS.. TAYLOR’S APARTMENT, THAT PERSON BELIEVING THAT INTRUDERS WERE BREAKING IN IMMEDIATELY FIRED. ONE SHOT HITTING THE FIRST OFFICER AT THE DOOR. TWO OFFICERS IMMEDIATELY FIRED A TOTAL OF 22 SHOTS INTO THE APARTMENT. ONE OF THOSE SHOTS HIT MS.. TAYLOR IN THE CHEST AND KILLED HER. WE ALLEGE THAT THE DEFENDANTS KNEW THEIR ACTIONS AND FALSIFYING THE AFFIDAVIT COULD CREATE A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND WE ALLEGE THESE UNLAWFUL ACTS RESULTED IN MS.. TAYLOR’S DEATH. THE CHARGES ANNOUNCED TODAY ALSO ALLEGED THAT THE OFFICERS RESPONSIBLE FOR FALSIFYING THE AFFIDAVIT THAT LED TO THE SEARCH TOOK STEPS TO COVER UP THEIR UNLAWFUL CONDUCT AFTER MS.. TAYLOR WAS KILLED. WE ALLEGE THAT DEFENDANTS JAYNES AND GOODLATTE CONSPIRED TO…
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