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Vox
2 days ago
- Politics
- Vox
DOJ seeks a single-day prison sentence for an officer convicted in the Breonna Taylor raid
This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here. Welcome to The Logoff: In a major reversal from the Biden administration, the Justice Department is asking for a token one-day prison sentence for an ex-police officer who fired shots into Breonna Taylor's home during a fatal raid in March 2020. Why is this in the news now? Brett Hankison, a former Louisville, Kentucky, officer, is set to be sentenced next week after being convicted last year of violating Taylor's civil rights. He could face a maximum sentence of up to life in prison — but under the DOJ request, would ultimately serve no time. What did Hankison do? Hankison was one of multiple officers to execute a raid on Taylor's apartment in March 2020. He blindly fired 10 shots into her apartment through a covered window and door, some of which entered an occupied adjoining apartment. None of the bullets Hankison fired ultimately struck a person, but Taylor was shot and killed by another Louisville police officer. What does the DOJ request mean for Hankison? If the judge — a Trump appointee — adheres to the DOJ sentencing memo, Hankison will never return to jail for his conviction. The memo requests that he receive credit for time already served, rendering even the single-day sentence irrelevant. It also calls for three years of supervised release and a meager fine as part of the sentence. The Logoff The email you need to stay informed about Trump — without letting the news take over your life. Email (required) Sign Up By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Why does this matter? Breonna Taylor's death was one of several high-profile police killings in early 2020 that led to widespread racial justice protests following the murder of George Floyd that May. Since then, strides — though often halting and imperfect — have been made toward police accountability and addressing racial discrimination in policing. The DOJ sentencing memo is the latest sign of the Trump administration's complete lack of interest in those efforts and preference to roll the clock back to an earlier era. And with that, it's time to log off… Hi readers! A second thank-you in as many days for your emails — I truly appreciated all of the animal photos. Today, I wanted to highlight this podcast by my colleague Sean Illing, about the idea of 'hopeful pessimism.' Sean talks with Mara van der Lugt about what the term means and how to sustain hope when you're feeling pessimistic. As she puts it, hope can be 'oriented not on certainty or expectation, but rather on the openness of the future' and a commitment to our values. It's a fascinating, lovely discussion that's really worth your time — I hope you take a moment to listen.
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
DOJ seeks one-day sentence for officer in raid that killed Breonna Taylor
In November, a federal jury found Brett Hankison, the Louisville police officer, guilty of violating Taylor's civil rights during a March 2020 police raid in which she was fatally shot, becoming the first officer directly involved in the case to be convicted on criminal charges. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Hankison faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. The judge overseeing the case — US District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings, who was appointed by President Trump during his first administration — will consider the government's request. A sentencing hearing is set for July 22, according to court documents. Advertisement The memo requests that Hankison receive credit for time already served — the day he was arrested and made his initial court appearance — and that he not serve any time in prison. Taylor, who is Black, was fatally shot weeks before the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd. The deaths helped ignite nationwide protests seeking greater police accountability over the use of excessive force against Black people. Advertisement Dhillon's memo says the Justice Department respects the jury's verdict and that the conviction means Hankison, who is white, will probably never be able to serve as a police officer or own a firearm. The memo explains why the Justice Department believes that Hankison deserves a punishment that is far less than what federal sentencing guidelines recommend. 'Although he was part of the team executing the warrant, Defendant Hankison did not shoot Ms. Taylor and is not otherwise responsible for her death,' the memo says. 'Defendant Hankison did not wound her or anyone else at the scene that day, although he did discharge his duty weapon ten times blindly into Ms. Taylor's home.' Attorneys representing Tamika Palmer, Taylor's mother, issued a scathing statement Thursday, denouncing the Justice Department's move and describing Palmer as 'once again, heartbroken and angry.' 'This recommendation is an insult to the life of Breonna Taylor and a blatant betrayal of the jury's decision,' attorneys Ben Crump, Lonita Baker, and Sam Aguiar said in the statement. 'When a police officer is found guilty of violating someone's constitutional rights, there must be real accountability and justice.' The jury found that Hankison used excessive force by firing 10 shots through Taylor's apartment's window and door, both covered with shades and curtains. The jury, which deliberated for three days, found Hankison not guilty on a second charge of violating the rights of three neighbors. None of the bullets fired from Hankison's gun struck anyone, but several penetrated the apartment walls and entered an adjoining unit. Taylor was fatally shot by another officer after Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired a warning shot from a legally owned handgun and police returned fire, investigators said. Advertisement The Justice Department's sentencing request 'is not just an insult - it's a painful reminder that the violence of bad decision-making continues to be overlooked and excused,' Louisville Metro Council Representative Shameka Parrish-Wright, a Democrat, said. The Justice Department prosecuted Hankison after he was acquitted in 2022 on state charges of wanton endangerment of Taylor's neighbors. Hankison's first trial on federal charges ended in a mistrial in November 2023 when the jury deadlocked, prompting federal prosecutors to announce they would retry him. 'After a recent review … counsel is unaware of another prosecution in which a police officer has been charged with depriving the rights of another person under the Fourth Amendment for returning fire and not injuring anyone,' the Justice Department memo states. 'Perhaps coincidentally, in this case, two federal trials were ultimately necessary to obtain a unanimous verdict of guilt. But even then, the jury convicted on only one count, despite the fact that the elements of the charge and underlying conduct are essentially the same.' Samantha Trepel — a former Justice Department civil rights attorney who prosecuted officers who were found guilty of violating Floyd's civil rights in Minneapolis — reacted to the sentencing memo in a LinkedIn post, saying it sets a dangerous precedent and sends a sign that the Justice Department will not hold officers accountable who violate the law. Before Hankison's conviction, the only person convicted in connection with the raid was Kelly Goodlett, a former detective who pleaded guilty to federal charges that she helped falsify the police search warrant that allowed officers to enter the apartment. 'The court will recognize this for what it is - transparent, last minute political interference into a case that was tried by nonpolitical, longtime career prosecutors who obtained this conviction in front of an all-white jury of Kentucky citizens before a Trump-appointed judge,' Trepel wrote. 'It is a betrayal of the jury's verdict, which included a special finding that the officers' conduct amounted to attempted murder. It is a betrayal of the brave officers who took the witness stand and testified that this officer's conduct endangered lives and violated basic, fundamental policies and training.' Advertisement Keenan, one of the attorneys who signed the memo, was involved in the Justice Department's attempts to walk back another Biden-era police conviction this year — a case involving a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy found guilty on civil rights charges after he assaulted and pepper-sprayed a woman outside a supermarket in 2023. A federal jury convicted Deputy Trevor Kirk in February of one felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law, a crime that carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years. After Bill Essayli, the Trump-appointed acting US attorney in Los Angeles, took office, Kirk received an unusual plea offer that called for dismissing the felony charge if the deputy agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor with a recommended sentence of one year of probation. Keenan was the only federal prosecutor to sign the plea agreement. Several federal prosecutors in Los Angeles who had been involved in the case resigned. A judge rejected the government's sentencing recommendation of probation and sentenced Kirk to four months in prison last month. The sentencing memo in the Hankison case and the Kirk case are the latest signs that the Justice Department under the Trump administration is abandoning Biden-era efforts to reform police conduct across the country. Advertisement Nearly two months ago, the Justice Department moved to drop police reform agreements it had negotiated with Louisville and Minneapolis during the Biden administration. Those consent decrees came after sweeping, years-long federal investigations in both cities found their respective police departments had engaged in the systemic use of excessive force and racial discrimination.
UPI
2 days ago
- Politics
- UPI
DOJ recommends one day in jail for ex-cop in Breonna Taylor raid
In 2020, protesters in Los Angeles march with an effigy of Breonna Taylor during a demonstration held to demand justice for her death after the results of a grand jury indictment of former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison. Today, the Department of Justice filed a memo requesting a sentence of one day in jail for Hankison, who was convicted of violating Taylor's civil rights. File Photo by Kyle Grillot/EPA July 17 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Justice filed a memo on Thursday recommending one day in jail for former Louisville, Ky., police detective Brett Hankison, who shot into Breonna Taylor's apartment 10 times but didn't injure anyone. Breonna Taylor, an emergency room technician, was awakened from sleep March 13, 2020, by police with a falsified "no-knock warrant." Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, thought the officers were intruders and shot at them. The police opened fire, and another officer shot and killed Taylor. Hankison was outside the apartment and shot into the window 10 times. Hankison was convicted of deprivation of rights under color of law in November. He faces up to life in prison. Prosecutors wrote in the filing they were unaware of another case "in which a police officer has been charged with depriving the rights of another person under the Fourth Amendment for returning fire and not injuring anyone." A pre-sentence report from the U.S. Probation Office recommended a sentence between 11.25 and 14 years, USA Today reported. The DOJ says that range was incorrectly calculated and "excessive." It recommends the court "grant a significant downward departure." The memo was signed by Robert J. Keenum, senior counsel for the DOJ's civil rights division, and Harmeet Dhillon, an assistant attorney general for the department. Neither was involved with the case. The memo prompted a strong response. "The fact that Donald Trump's DOJ thinks Breonna Taylor's life is worth just a one-day jail sentence is morally reprehensible and deeply insulting. This is a dark day for our entire city," Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Ky., said in a statement. McGarvey represents Louisville. Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said the police did knock and announce themselves. But Taylor's neighbors and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, said they heard no knock or announcement. Walker has since gotten a $2 million settlement against the city. Hankison is white, and he was the first convicted in the case. The other officers were not convicted. Hankison was previously acquitted on a state charge. The memo said that Hankison's suffered enough. "Here, multiple prosecutions against defendant Hankison were brought, and only one of three juries -- the last one -- found him guilty on these facts, and then only on one charge," the memo says. "The government respects the jury's verdict, which will almost certainly ensure that defendant Hankison never serves as a law enforcement officer again and will also likely ensure that he never legally possesses a firearm again." But others disagreed with DOJ's request. Hankison's shots "missed a sleeping baby by about two feet," said former Justice Department Civil Rights Division official Samatha Trepel on LinkedIn. She believes the court will see the request as "transparent, last minute political interference into a case that was tried by non-political, longtime career prosecutors who obtained this conviction in front of an all-white jury of Kentucky citizens before a Trump-appointed judge."
2 days ago
- Politics
US Justice Department wants no prison time for ex-officer convicted in Breonna Taylor raid
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The U.S. Justice Department is recommending an ex-Kentucky police officer convicted of using excessive force during the deadly Breonna Taylor raid should serve no prison time, an abrupt about-face after spending years prosecuting the former detective. Brett Hankison is the only officer who fired his weapon the night of the March 2020 botched drug raid who has faced criminal charges. His shots didn't hit or injure anyone, though they flew through Taylor's walls into a neighboring apartment. A federal judge will decide Hankison's sentence, which could amount to several years, on Tuesday at a hearing. If the judge heeds the Justice Department's request, it would mean that none of the Louisville police officers involved in the botched raid would face any prison time. The Justice Department, which has changed leadership under President Donald Trump since Hankison's conviction, said in a sentencing memo this week that "there is no need for a prison sentence to protect the public' from Hankison. Federal prosecutors asked the judge to sentence him to time served, which amounts to one day, and three years of supervised probation. Prosecutors at his previous federal trials aggressively pursued a conviction against Hankison, arguing that he blindly fired 10 shots into Taylor's windows without identifying a target. Taylor was shot in her hallway by two other officers after her boyfriend fired from inside the apartment, striking an officer in the leg. But in the sentencing memo, federal prosecutors wrote that though Hankison's 'response 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.' Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who helped Taylor's family secure a $12 million wrongful death settlement against the city of Louisville, said the Justice Department's recommendation 'is an insult to the life of Breonna Taylor and a blatant betrayal of the jury's decision.' '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,' Crump said in a statement on social media. Three other ex-Louisville police officers have been charged with crafting a falsified warrant, but they have not yet gone to trial. None of them were at the scene when Taylor was shot. The death of the 26-year-old Black woman, along with the May 2020 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, sparked racial injustice protests nationwide that year. A separate jury deadlocked on federal charges against Hankison in 2023, and he was acquitted on state charges of wanton endangerment in 2022.
2 days ago
- Politics
DOJ suggests ex-officer convicted in raid of Breonna Taylor's home should get 1 day in jail
The Department of Justice recommended that the former officer who was found guilty of violating Breonna Taylor's civil rights during a botched Kentucky raid should receive one day of imprisonment in a sentencing memorandum filed Wednesday. Brett Hankison was found guilty of one count of violating Taylor's civil rights when the former Louisville police officer blindly shot into her apartment 10 times in March 2020. Hankison's bullets did not hit anyone. The Justice Department filing, which also recommended three years of supervised release, was signed only by department officials and none of the line prosecutors. "This sets a dangerous precedent," attorneys of Taylor's family said in a statement on Thursday. "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." The sentencing for Hankison, which was scheduled to take place on Wednesday, has been delayed until July 21 after prosecutors asked for more time to file their sentencing memo. Hankison's defense team did not object to the delay. This comes after Hankison's defense team filed a sentencing memorandum urging the judge for leniency, citing various factors. In the sentencing memorandum, Hankison's defense team argued, in part, that Taylor's boyfriend first fired at police, which is what "provoked" the three officers, including Hankison, "to discharge their weapons." They also argued that in prison Hankison could be "suspectable to abuse based on his status as a police officer" and the immense media coverage of this case. The guilty verdict came in November, hours after the jury acquitted Hankison of a second count of violating the civil rights of three of Taylor's neighbors, who lived in an adjacent apartment that was also struck by gunfire during the raid. Taylor was fatally shot during the raid. The three officers fired dozens of rounds after her boyfriend fired one round at them, striking one of the officers. Hankison fired 10 rounds through Taylor's sliding glass door and window, which were covered with blinds and curtains, prosecutors said. Several of the rounds traveled into Taylor's neighbor's apartment, where three people were at the time. None of the 10 rounds hit anyone. Prosecutors argued Hankison's use of force was unjustified, put people in danger and violated the civil rights of Taylor and her three neighbors. The indictment alleged Hankison deprived Taylor of the right to be free from unreasonable seizures and deprived her neighbors of the right to be free from the deprivation of liberty without due process of law. Hankison was initially set to be sentenced in April 2025, but the sentencing was delayed until June 2025 and then again until July 16 and now until July 21 after the judge partially granted the motion filed by prosecutors, who asked for a 14-day delay. The Justice Department declined to comment beyond the filing. Hankison's legal team didn't immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.
