Louisville To Announce ‘Substantial’ Settlement In Breonna Taylor Case

Topline

Louisville’s metro government is expected to announce a “substantial” financial settlement Tuesday with the family of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman fatally shot by police in her apartment six months ago, according to multiple media reports.

Key Facts

Key Background

Taylor was killed in March when police, executing a drug-related search warrant, fired at least 20 shots into her apartment, the family attorney has said. But her case did not gain national attention until May, about the same time as video emerged of the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery in Florida. Taylor, Arbery and George Floyd, who died under the knee of a white police officer in Minneapolis on Memorial Day, became part of a rallying cry as demonstrators took to the streets to protest violence of police and vigilantes aimed at people of color. Taylor’s case escalated calls for police reforms including an end to “no-knock” warrants, in which police are not required to announce their presence before forcing their way into someone’s home. The three Louisville police officers were armed with a no-knock warrant. They say they did announce their presence but Taylor’s boyfriend,. Kenneth Walker, and neighbors did not verify hearing that. Walker has said he thought someone was breaking in, prompting him to fire a single shot toward the front door. Mayor Fischer has formally banned the use of such warrants. Taylor’s case was taken up by sports figures and celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, who featured Taylor on the cover of her September magazine — marking the first cover not feature its namesake Winfrey in the magazine’s 20-year history.

Tangent

Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine sponsored a campaign featuring 26 billboards, one for every year Taylor was alive, across the city of Louisville calling for arrests and charges in the case.

Further Reading

City of Louisville agrees to ‘substantial’ settlement in Breonna Taylor shooting (Louisville Courier Journal)

Lewis Hamilton Won’t Be Investigated For Wearing ‘Political’ Breonna Taylor T-Shirt (Forbes)

Breonna Taylor Becomes First Person Other Than Oprah Featured On The Cover Of Her Eponymous Magazine (Forbes)

Breonna Taylor’s legacy: Caring, ‘super goofy’ and a devoted paramedic (NBC)