Cop involved in Breonna Taylor shooting threatens legal action for being called a ‘murderer’
Louisville Metro Police Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, who was wounded in the botched raid on Breonna Taylor's home, says he's fed up with 'defamatory' statements
Despite being one of three white officers involved in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor, Louisville Metro Police Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly is threatening to take legal action against those who have labeled him a “murderer.”
Mattingly’s attorney Todd McMurtry on Thursday posted a video to social media that depicts his client being taken to a vehicle after he was shot in the leg during the fatal botched drug raid at Taylor’s Louisville, Ky., apartment in March. The grainy video shows a wounded Mattingly being carried through a parking lot to a car before the person at his aid changed direction to place him in the back of a truck instead.
The Twitter caption read, “This is the raw video of Louisville officer, Sgt. John (sic) Mattingly shortly after Kenneth Walker shot him. They called him a ‘murderer’ when all he did was defend himself.”
Kenneth Walker, Taylor’s boyfriend, said he shot unbeknownst to him at officers, who were executing a no-knock warrant, after fearing that someone was breaking into Taylor’s home in the middle of the night. The couple was sleeping in bed prior to the deadly incident that left the 26-year-old Black woman with as many as six bullet wounds from police, according to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron.
Cameron announced Wednesday afternoon that a grand jury decided to indict one officer on three counts of wanton endangerment for the shooting incident, though the charges being filed are not directly related to Taylor’s death.
Read More: Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend ‘devastated’ he was blamed for her ‘murder’ by Kentucky AG: lawyer
On Friday, McMurtry sent an email to the Courier-Journal stating his intention to represent Mattingly “with regard to affirmative claims he has against people who called him a ‘murderer.’ These statements are defamatory and actionable.”
Mattingly and McMurtry plan to file civil suits against those who have made such remarks.
Prior to the announcement of the grand jury indictment against former officer Brett Hankison, Mattingly allegedly sent an email to 1,000 of his colleagues at the Louisville Metro Police Department.
Read More: Cop in Breonna Taylor shooting was ‘dirty,’ had ‘vendetta,’ lawsuit says
“You DO NOT DESERVE to be in this position,” Mattingly reportedly wrote. “The position that allows thugs to get in your face and yell, curse, and degrade you. Throw bricks, bottles, and urine on you and expect you to do nothing. It goes against EVERYTHING we were all taught in the academy.”
Mattingly went on to say that cops are trained to protect regardless of a person’s ethnicity or sexual orientation.
“We aren’t better than anyone. This is not an us against society, but it is good versus evil.”
On Friday, Chief Robert Schroeder said the department is aware of Mattingly’s email and is currently trying to decide “what course of action to take.”
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