Judge sentences former LMPD detective Brett Hankison to 2 years and 9 months in prison
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Judge sentences former LMPD detective Brett Hankison to 2 years, 9 months in prison
Brett Hankison was found guilty of violating Breonna Taylor’s civil rights. He entered her home in March of 2020 after a warrant was issued to search the home. He did not shoot Taylor but fired his gun 10 times into her apartment. The judge called what the prosecution did during the hearing a “180 degree turn’ The judge said the government was arguing the opposite of what they did to the jury during the trial. The sentence includes a total of 33 months, or two years and nine months, in federal prison, followed by three years of probation. It is the first conviction of a Louisville police officer who was involved in the deadly raid. The jury recommended no prison time for Hankison, but she went lower than the sentence a probation officer recommended of 11 to 14 years in prison. It was the first time a jury had found a detective guilty of using excessive force and violating a civil rights charge. The case is still under appeal, and the judge has not set a date for a retrial.
In November, Hankison was found guilty of violating Breonna Taylor’s civil rights and using excessive force when he entered her home in March of 2020 after a warrant was issued to search the home in connection with Taylor’s boyfriend allegedly selling drugs, but no drugs were found inside the home.
Taylor was killed during the botched raid. Hankison did not shoot Taylor but fired his gun 10 times into her apartment through a sliding glass door. Three bullets went into an adjacent apartment and nearly hit the people inside.
Breonna Taylor was shot and killed by LMPD officers inside her apartment on March 13, 2020. (WAVE)
Timeline leading up to Brett Hankison’s sentencing:
March 13, 2020: Breonna Taylor is shot and killed during LMPD’s botched raid at her apartment.
June 23, 2020: Detective Brett Hankison, one of three officers who fired shots the night of Taylor’s death, is fired for “blindly” firing into Taylor’s apartment.
Sept. 23, 2020: A Kentucky grand jury indicts Hankison for shooting into neighboring apartments but did not charge any officers for their role in Taylor’s death.
March 3, 2022: Hankison is acquitted of state charges that he endangered neighbors during the botched raid.
Nov. 16, 2023: Jurors fail to reach a unanimous verdict on federal civil rights charges in the trial of Hankison. The judge declares a mistrial.
Dec. 13, 2023: Federal prosecutors tell a judge they intend to retry Hankison.
Nov. 2, 2024: A federal jury convicts Hankison of using excessive force and violating Breonna Taylor’s civil rights, marking the first conviction of a Louisville police officer who was involved in the deadly raid.
The Department of Justice had recommended no prison time for Hankison. Several social justice advocates in the community spoke out against the recommendation.
The judge called what the prosecution did during the hearing a “180 degree turn” as they, as well as the defense, argued for time served for the one day Hankison spent in jail when he was initially booked and for Hankison to just serve probation. The judge said the government was arguing the opposite of what they did to the jury during the trial.
The judge said the DOJ’s recommendation and later prosecution’s recommendation was inappropriate, but she went lower than the sentence a probation officer recommended of 11 to 14 years in prison.
The judge’s sentence includes a total of 33 months, or two years and nine months, in federal prison, followed by three years of probation.
When Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother, was asked if she felt like they saw a fair sentencing, she said, “I feel like we got something. I don’t think it was a fair sentencing, but it was a start.”
“I think the judge did the best she could with what she had to work with,” Palmer said. “There was no prosecution in there for us. There was no prosecution in there for Breonna. I’m grateful for the judge for giving some time because we could’ve walked away with nothing according to what they recommended. I’m grateful for my friends and family for showing up no matter how disappointing it seems to be, but we still here, and I’m just grateful that something happened today.”
Palmer and the family’s attorney said Hankison had both attorneys, his private lawyer and the prosecutor, arguing for him during the sentencing hearing.
Palmer said the prosecutor did not know who she was.
“That man didn’t know who I was when I walked into the room. I’ve never seen such a thing. I’ve never heard of such a thing. It was disrespectful, it was heartbreaking, it shouldn’t have happened,” Palmer said. “The fact we weren’t even given the same opportunity. They submitted letters, and we had family and friends submit letters they never even turned in. I don’t know the point of him. I didn’t know why he was here.”
Attorney for Breonna Taylor’s family Benjamin Crump said they were grateful the case had at least gotten this far.
“Even though it’s not what we wanted, we thought he should’ve gotten more time, we are grateful to Kristen Clark, Merrick Garland and a Department of Justice who encouraged, for the first time in history, to bring federal charges against a police officer for Killing a Black woman in America,” Crump said.
Watch Palmer and others’ full reaction outside of the courthouse here:
Hankison’s family was in the courtroom during the sentencing hearing. They asked the judge to only give Hankison probation and asked for mercy.
During the sentencing hearing, Hankison apologized to Taylor’s family and said if he knew what he did today, he never would have fired his gun.
Louisville Metro Councilwoman Donna Purivs (D-5) released a statement following the ruling, saying, “Thank God the judge ignored the DOJ’s recommended sentencing for Mr. Hankinson. This was a direct insult to the family of Breonna Taylor and the insensitivity added nothing but pain to the loss of her life. My prayers will continue to be with Ms. Palmer and their entire family and loved ones.”
Earlier in the day, before Hankison was sentenced, a judge denied Hankison’s request for a new trial.
Later in the afternoon, four protestors, including Breonna Taylor’s aunt Bianca Austin, were taken into custody after some protestors began to block traffic.
Protesters were upset that Austin and Taylor’s boyfriend Kenny Walker were not initially allowed into the courtroom, as it had filled up. Walker was eventually allowed in to give a victim impact statement.
Protesters spoke out as well after the sentencing, expressing a mix of emotions from excitement to frustration.
One protester WAVE spoke to said they did not think it was enough.
“I don’t think [the sentencing]’s justice. I think that he was involved in the murder of a person. I think if he was a Black male individual, he would have been probably sent away for life,” Anice Chenault said.Former LMPD detective Brett Hankison was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for violating Breonna Taylor’s civil rights.
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