Mother seeks justice, FBI investigation goes on one year after Breonna Taylor death
Taylor's mother Tamika Palmer files complaint against six officers involved in the 26-year-old's death
The death of Breonna Taylor has reached its one-year anniversary and her mother is still fighting for justice for her killing. All the while, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Louisville states that they are still probing the case in search of justice.
According to CNN, Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother, earlier this week filed internal affairs complaints against six officers of the Professional Standards Unit of the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD). Palmer alleges that the six officers’ behavior was “unacceptable, intolerable and contributing factors to Breonna’s death and the deficient investigation thereafter.”
Taylor was killed by gunfire after LMPD served a no-knock warrant to her home on March 13, 2020. Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, mistook the officers entering the front door to the apartment for burglars and fired a single shot. Three officers returned fire with dozens of bullets, striking and fatally wounding Taylor, who was 26 years old.
Palmer’s lawyer, Sam Aguiar, said that the internal affairs complaints were filed in an effort to “get answers, explanations and accountability,” as well as to avoid attempts of a police cover-up.
“We believe a thorough investigation of these allegations will expose the rotten underbelly of a rogue police division and the lengths that investigators went to protect the officers,” Aguiar told CNN. “And when it does, LMPD needs to show that it will clean house, get Tamika Palmer the answers she’s been owed for a year and honor the oaths sworn to protect our citizens. These officers can’t be allowed to lie and say it’s alright because they’re police.”
READ MORE: Breonna Taylor’s mother on the anniversary of her death: ‘Nobody has been held accountable’
In addition to Palmer’s complaint, the FBI announced on Saturday that they are still investigating Taylor’s death. As reported by WLKY, their investigation is under Washington D.C.’s civil rights division in an effort to determine if Taylor’s civil rights had been violated.
The statement, signed by FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Brown, was posted to the FBI Louisville Twitter account:
“On this one year anniversary of the death of Breonna Taylor, FBI Louisville remains steadfast in its commitment to bringing this investigation to its appropriate conclusion. Even though the COVID pandemic presented several unexpected obstacles, FBI Louisville has made significant progress in the investigation since it was initiated in May 2020. Our team is actively investigating all aspects of her death and will continue to work diligently until this investigation is completed,” the statement posted Saturday morning read.
READ MORE: Federal look into Breonna Taylor case casts a wider net
Currently, the investigation is the only open case on Taylor’s death. The criminal investigation into Taylor’s death was concluded when Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that two of the three officers, Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove, would not be charged for the shooting.
Only one officer, Brett Hankison, was subject to charges of wanton endangerment, but that was due to the bullets from his weapon hitting an adjacent apartment.
Palmer told CNN that she hopes justice can be served for her daughter.
“It can’t end here,” Palmer said. “I’m still out here, I’m still doing what I need to do to get justice for Breonna to make sure that people do right by her.”
Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!
TheGrio is now on Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and Roku. Download theGrio today!
