A federal judge is dismissing felony charges against 2 officers who got the warrant to enter Breonna Taylor’s home … with the judge blaming Breonna’s boyfriend, and not the warrant, for causing her death.
Here’s the deal … in 2022, Detective Joshua Jaynes and Sgt. Kyle Meany were charged with submitting a false affidavit to search Taylor’s home before the raid, and then creating a fake cover story to avoid responsibility after Taylor was killed during the raid.
They were also charged with felonies for using a dangerous weapon to deprive Breonna of her Fourth Amendment right to defend herself against unreasonable search.
But, U.S. District Judge Charles Simpsonsays there’s no link between the warrantless entry and Breonna’s death — claiming the immediate cause of her death was the fact her boyfriend Kenneth Walker shot at officers, who responded with lethal force.
Dropping the weapons charges is huge victory for the officers, who could’ve gotten life sentences if they’d been convicted.
Worth noting, neither Jaynes or Meany were actually at the raid.
Jaynes and Meany still aren’t out of the woods yet … Meany faces one charge of false statement to federal investigators, while Jaynes has been charged with two counts of falsification of records, conspiracy to falsify records and witness tampering.
Jaynes could get up to 40 years if convicted and Meany could get 5. They’ve both been fired from Louisville PD.
Taylor’s 2020 death sparked outrage across the country, and contributed to widespread protests.
Two other detectives were federally charged alongside Jaynes and Meany — former detectives Brett Hankison and Kelly Goodlett were hit with various charges as well. Goodlett reportedly pled guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
In a statement to a Louisville news outlet, the Taylor family says they’re devastated … though they add the prosecutors on the case plan to appeal the judge’s ruling.
