
Sentencing hearing set for ex-Kentucky officer convicted in Breonna Taylor raid
Brett Hankison fired his weapon the night of the March 2020 botched drug raid. His shots didn't hit or injure anyone, though they flew through Taylor's walls into a neighboring apartment.
The 26-year-old's death, along with the May 2020 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, sparked racial injustice protests nationwide that year.
Though the sentence could amount to several years, if U.S. District Judge Grady Jennings heeds the Justice Department's request, it would mean none of the Louisville police officers involved in the raid would face prison time.
Last week, the U.S. Justice Department recommended no prison time for Hankison, an abrupt about-face by federal prosecutors that has angered critics after the department spent years prosecuting the former detective.
The Justice Department, which has changed leadership under President Donald Trump since Hankison's conviction, said in a sentencing memo last week that "there is no need for a prison sentence to protect the public' from Hankison. Federal prosecutors suggested time already served, which amounts to one day, and three years of supervised probation.
Prosecutors at his previous federal trials aggressively pursued a conviction against Hankison, 49, 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. Neither of the other officers was charged in state or federal court after prosecutors deemed they were justified in returning fire into the apartment. Louisville police used a drug warrant to enter the apartment, but found no drugs or cash inside.
A separate jury deadlocked on federal charges against Hankison in 2023, and he was acquitted on state charges of wanton endangerment in 2022.
In their recent 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, has called the Justice Department recommendation 'an insult to the life of Breonna Taylor and a blatant betrayal of the jury's decision' and said in a social media statement that it "sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of Black Americans with near-total impunity.'
A U.S. Probation Office presentencing report said Hankison should face a range of 135 to 168 months imprisonment on the excessive force conviction, according to the memo. But federal prosecutors said multiple factors — including that Hankison's two other trials ended with no convictions — should greatly reduce the potential punishment.
The memorandum was submitted by Harmeet Dhillon, chief of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and a Trump political appointee who in May moved to cancel settlements with Louisville and Minneapolis that had called for overhauling their police departments.
In the Taylor case, three other ex-Louisville police officers have been charged with crafting a falsified warrant, but have not gone to trial. None were at the scene when Taylor was shot.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
22 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Epstein's brother hints at Ghislaine Maxwell's knowledge
Jeffrey Epstein's brother has accused the White House of a 'cover up' after Donald Trump's Justice Department said it would speak to Ghislaine Maxwell in jail. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche revealed on Tuesday he expects to meet with Maxwell in the coming days to see if she has 'information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims.' Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted of trafficking of minors on behalf of Epstein. The move to speak to her is part of an ongoing Justice Department effort to cast itself as transparent in the Epstein case, which has been shrouded in conspiracy theories. It follows a fierce backlash from parts of Trump's base over an earlier refusal by the administration to release additional records in the investigation. Attorney General Pam Bondi has faced mounting pressure from Trump's supporters to release all materials related to Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. A lawyer for Maxwell said she would cooperate with the Justice Department. 'I can confirm that we are in discussions with the government and that Ghislaine will always testify truthfully,' her lawyer David Oscar Markus said. 'We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case.' But Mark Epstein (pictured right), brother of the disgraced late financier, claimed it was the latest effort to distract attention from unpublished evidence and the circumstances surrounding the death of his brother. Two weeks ago, a months-long review conducted by the Justice Department and FBI concluded that Epstein died by suicide. Mark Epstein maintains his brother was killed. He said: 'They'll talk to her (Maxwell) and ask her what her favorite color is. So they can say they talked to her. It depends what the conversation is about. Maybe she'll be afraid to speak, afraid they'll hold it against her and turn down her appeal.' Mark Epstein said he knew Maxwell in the 1990s but had not spoken to her for several decades. But he believed she would have information about interactions between Epstein and Trump. 'She could certainly verify that Trump was in Jeffrey's office many times,' he said. He claimed a White House statement on Monday that Trump had 'never been' to his brother's office was 'the biggest crap I've ever heard. I would speak to Jeffrey and he'd say he was with Trump. I know people in his office saw him there,' he said. The White House referred a request for comment to the Justice Department. The Justice Department did not comment beyond Blanche's earlier statement. Blanche said: 'This Department of Justice does not shy away from uncomfortable truths, nor from the responsibility to pursue justice wherever the facts may lead.' He said in the recent Justice Department and FBI review 'no evidence was uncovered that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.' Blanche added: 'President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislane Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say. I anticipate meeting with Ms. Maxwell in the coming days. Until now, no administration on behalf of the Department had inquired about her willingness to meet with the government. That changes now.' Speaking in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump addressed the DOJ plan to speak to Maxwell, saying he was not aware of it but it seemed 'appropriate to do.' He said: 'I don't know anything about it. I don't really follow that too much. It's sort of a witch hunt.' Trump has long said he was 'not a fan' of Jeffrey Epstein, that he had a 'falling out' with him around 20 years ago and never spoke to him again. Last week, the president sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal after it published a story about Trump's alleged friendship with Epstein. Meanwhile, some of the president's supporters have continued to pursue conspiracy theories that Epstein had a list of high-profile clients. The Justice Department and FBI review concluded there was no such 'client list.' Trump has urged his supporters not to be taken in by what he called a Democrat 'scam' and 'hoax' which was actually 'pretty boring stuff.' Some of Trump's most staunch supporters in recent weeks have called on Bondi to resign, after she backtracked on a promise she made earlier this year. She had said her department would release additional materials including 'a lot of names' and 'a lot of flight logs' in connection with Epstein's clients. Since then, at Trump's direction, Bondi and Blanche have asked a federal court for permission to unseal grand jury transcripts in the cases of both Epstein and Maxwell. However, legal experts have said that those transcripts will not likely contain the types of materials being sought by Trump's supporters. A source who spoke with the Daily Mail said that Maxwell would be 'more than happy' to testify before Congress. 'No-one from the government has ever asked her to share what she knows,' the source said. 'She remains the only person to be jailed in connection to Epstein and she would welcome the chance to tell the American public the truth.'


The Independent
24 minutes ago
- The Independent
U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee will comply with Trump's ban on trans women in women's sports
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee will enforce President Trump 's ban on transgender women competing in women's sports. The updated 27-page document titled 'U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee Policy' was published Friday and appeared on the USOPC 's website Monday and failed to make any reference to the word 'transgender.' USOPC officials said that they were 'committed to protecting opportunities for athletes participating in sport' by complying with Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act. The update would 'ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment,' it stated. Trump's 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order was published in February. Since then, the president has continued to slam numerous transgender athletes competing in the U.S. At the time of signing the order, he defended the order as a means to ending 'the dangerous and unfair participation of men in women's sports' and pledged to take 'immediate action' against schools and associations that 'denied women single-sex sports and single-sex locker rooms,' according to a White House document shared with The Independent. Moreover, a letter from CEO Sarah Hirshland and President Gene Sykes, requested by CNN, revealed that the USOPC had 'engaged in a series of respectful and constructive conversations with federal officials' since Trump issued the order. Adding, 'As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations.' The committee said that the changes align with the Ted Stevens Act, which 'reinforces [their] mandated responsibility to promote athlete safety and competitive fairness.' Ted Stevens, a U.S Senator for over 40 years, signed the Amateur Sports Act in 1978 to establish the U.S. Olympic Committee and National Governing Bodies for each Olympic sport. Twenty years later, it was revised to reflect that amateurism was no longer a requirement of the Olympics and to include the Paralympics. All governing bodies must now obey the USOPC's new guidance, which is now highlighted at the top of the USOPC webpage on 'Transgender Athlete Participation in Sport.' Previously, the organization had sought 'to rely on real data and science-based evidence rather than ideology' in determining the eligibility of transgender athletes. It stressed that they made 'science‑based decisions, sport by sport and discipline by discipline.' The stance of not recognising transgender athletes in women's sports has long been peddled by Trump and MAGA during his time in office and before, during his presidential race. In June, he made a remark on the matter while male players from Italian soccer giants Juventus stood behind him, posing for photos as part of their Club World Cup tour. He has also honed in on several specific cases across the U.S., including launching an investigation into a Connecticut school system over its transgender athletic policy. In March, the president launched a broadside against Maine's Governor Janet Mills for refusing to ban transgender athletes from participating in women's sports, threatening, 'You better do it because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't.'


Reuters
25 minutes ago
- Reuters
China's Vice Premier He to hold US trade talks in Sweden
BEIJING, July 23 (Reuters) - China's Vice Premier He Lifeng will visit Sweden from July 27-30 to hold economic and trade talks with U.S. officials, the Chinese commerce ministry said on Wednesday.