On March 13, officers attempted to conduct a no-knock search warrant at the home of Breonna Taylor after suspecting her of receiving packages for two people involved with drugs. Breonna Taylor and her boyfriend Kenneth Walker were asleep when they were woken up to what they thought was Taylor’s ex boyfriend forcefully entering the home, when it was really Officer Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and. Myles Cosgrove. Walker grabbed his gun and shot at the officers. Hankison responded with 10 shots, five of which hitting Breonna Taylor. She received no medical attention for 20 minutes, and there were no drugs found at the home. 

Breonna Taylor’s death along with many others resulted in worldwide Black Lives Matter protests.These protests are fighting against police brutality towards black people and are pushing for justice for the lives taken by corrupt police officers. Each of the police officers involved with the death of Breonna Taylor had been fired June 23, but protesters pushed for Hankison to be charged with murder. The state of Kentucky tried to negotiate with Taylor’s family by giving them 12 million dollars, but that’s not what they wanted. They wanted justice for Breonna Taylor’s death.

Investigations were conducted and Hankison was charged with Wanton Endangerment on Sept 23, but not murder. When Hankison was shooting at random, he fired shots into the neighbors of Breonna Taylor’s apartment, a man and his pregnant girlfriend, both of which were not hit by the shot. He was not charged with murder because the law states that a police officer is allowed to shoot their gun once there’s a gun being shot upon them.  

Although this is true, why were there 10 shots? Why were there shots going into the neighbors’ house in the first place? The two neighbors pressed charges against the officers leading to the Wanton Endangerment charges. The family next door got justice, but sadly Breonna Taylor did not. 

Many were outraged by this charge as he’s only looking at a fine and up to five years in prison. Breonna Taylor was worth more than five years. Ben Crump, the Taylor family’s attorney, responded to the charge stating, “this is outrageous and offensive!” From what is being seen now, millions of people agree with what he said.

Now what does the future look like? The day the public was told the charges brought upon Brett Hankison was also the day two cops were shot and killed during a Breonna Taylor protest. Will all the protests be this way? When the Black Lives Matter protests first started in late May for George Floyd, a black man who was murdered by police officers in broad daylight, most of the protests turned into riots. This was never the protesters’ intention. Most of the protests were peaceful until many saw an opportunity to start chaos and add onto the mess the year 2020 has already given us. Many of the protests have calmed down, so most are positive that they will stay this way until major breaks in the case are announced. 

Many believe that there is still a chance they can get justice for Breonna Taylor by signing petitions, being active within the Black Lives Matter community, and of course saying her name which will raise awareness to the cause. Being active within the community had a very large impact on the outcome of the George Floyd case. Without everyone’s help internationally, there was a big probability that the police officers who killed him wouldn’t have been charged with murder or anything at all. There’s still hope for Taylor’s case.

It’s important to note that what these activists are fighting for is basic human rights. It’s clear racism from police officers has been a problem for a very long time, and for it to just be recognized is ridiculous. Their duty is to protect people and property and by giving the public more reason to distrust their motives, how are they accomplishing that?