Justice for Breonna? Ex-Cop Gets Prison Time in High-Profile Case

Here’s the converted version of [translateContent] with numerical and financial data adjusted to match [originContent]: LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (AP) — A federal judge on Monday sentenced a former Kentucky police officer to nearly three years in prison for using excessive force during the fatal 2020 Breonna Taylor raid, rejecting a recommendation from the U.S. Department of Justice that called for no prison time for the defendant.

Brett Hankison, who fired 10 shots during the raid without hitting anyone, was the only officer present at the scene to be charged in connection with the death of the Black woman. He is the first individual to be sentenced to prison in a case that rocked Louisville and sparked weeks of nationwide protests against police brutality in 2020.

U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings, in handing down the sentence, stated that not imposing any prison time would be inappropriate and would undermine the jury’s November verdict. Judge Jennings expressed astonishment that Hankison’s indiscriminate shooting during the raid did not injure more people.

She sentenced Hankison, 49, to 33 months in prison for the excessive force conviction, followed by three years of supervised probation. He will not report to prison immediately; the U.S. Bureau of Prisons will determine the time and location for the commencement of his sentence, according to Jennings.

The judge, who presided over two of Hankison’s trials, voiced disappointment with the sentencing recommendation made by federal prosecutors last week. She criticized the Justice Department for treating Hankison’s actions as trivial, describing some of its arguments as inconsistent and inappropriate.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who assisted Taylor’s family in securing a $12 million wrongful death settlement from Louisville, described the department’s recommendation as an affront to Breonna Taylor’s life and a blatant betrayal of the jury’s decision.

Crump, present at Monday’s hearing, said he had hoped for a longer sentence but was grateful that “Hankison is at least going to prison and must reflect for those three years on Breonna Taylor and on the fact that her life mattered.”

After the hearing, Crump led a crowd outside the courthouse in the now-familiar chant: “Say Her Name.” The crowd responded, “Breonna Taylor!” Later, he and other members of Taylor’s legal team issued a statement criticizing the Justice Department.

“While today’s sentence falls short of our hopes and does not fully reflect the harm caused, it exceeds what the Department of Justice sought. That, in itself, speaks volumes,” the statement read.

Hankison’s 10 shots fired during the botched March 2020 drug raid penetrated the walls of Taylor’s apartment and nearly struck a neighboring family.

The death of the 26-year-old, along with the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, ignited nationwide protests against racial injustice and police brutality that same year.

However, the Justice Department—under new leadership since President Donald Trump took office in January—sought no prison time for Hankison, marking a stark reversal from federal prosecutors’ years-long pursuit of the former detective. They recommended that time already served, totaling one day, along with three years of supervised probation, be considered in lieu of additional imprisonment.

Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother, expressed disappointment that the new federal prosecutors assigned to the case were not pushing for a harsher sentence. Throughout Monday’s court proceedings, lead federal prosecutor Rob Keenan frequently concurred with Hankison’s defense attorneys on factors that would reduce the potential punishment.

“There was no real prosecution for us,” Palmer said afterward. “Brett had his own defense team; I didn’t realize he got a second one.” Taylor was shot in her hallway by two officers after her boyfriend fired from inside the apartment, wounding an officer in the leg. The other officers were not charged on either state or federal levels, as prosecutors deemed their return fire to be justified.

A separate jury deadlocked on federal charges against Hankison in 2023, and he was acquitted of state charges of wanton endangerment in 2022.

In their recent sentencing memo, federal prosecutors argued that while Hankison’s response in those tense circumstances was unreasonable in hindsight, “that unreasonable response did not result in the death or injury of Breonna Taylor, her boyfriend, her neighbors, fellow officers, or anyone else.”

Judge Jennings acknowledged on Monday that officers were provoked by the gunshot fired by Taylor’s boyfriend, but she emphasized that “this doesn’t give officers carte blanche to act as they please without facing consequences.”

During the hearing, Louisville police arrested four individuals outside the courthouse for causing disturbances, damaging vehicles, and creating an unsafe environment. Specific charges were not disclosed.

Federal prosecutors argued that several factors—including Hankison’s lack of convictions in two previous trials—should warrant a significant reduction in his potential sentence. They also contended that he would be vulnerable to abuse in prison and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The sentencing memorandum was submitted by Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, who in May moved to cancel settlements with Louisville and Minneapolis that had called for overhauls of their police departments.

In the Taylor case, three other former Louisville police officers face charges for allegedly falsifying the warrant but have not yet gone to trial. None of them were present when Taylor was shot. The warrant used to enter her apartment was one of five issued that night in search of evidence linked to an alleged drug dealer with whom Taylor had previously been associated.