Juniyah Palmer posted a photo of her slain sister on Instagram with the caption, “sister i am so sorry,” along with a sad face emoji.
Breonna Taylor’s sister took to social media to tell her late sibling that she is “so sorry,” following a Kentucky grand jury’s decision to not charge three police officers with Taylor's March 13 death in Louisville. Juniyah Palmer posted a photo of her slain sister on Instagram with the caption, “sister i am so sorry,” along with a sad face emoji.
On Wednesday, a Kentucky grand jury indicted one of the three officers present at the fatal shooting of Taylor, but on criminal charges not connected to Taylor's death. Former detective Brett Hankison was indicted on three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, charges which stem from allegedly shooting into a neighboring apartment the night that Taylor, a 26-year-old EMT, was shot in her home.
Hankison was booked Wednesday evening and released on $15,000 bond, according to reports. Hankison's attorney would not comment to Inside Edition Digital on the matter.
Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove, two other officers connected to the shooting, were found to have acted in self-defense and were not indicted, authorities announced. No one was charged in connection to Taylor's death.
Breonna's mother, Tamika Palmer, was told the grand jury's decision two minutes before it was announced, according to family friend and activist Christopher 2X. There was "a lot of sadness and weeping," he told CNN of the moment when the decision was relayed. "A mother in excruciating pain," he said of Palmer's reaction.
The announcement at large was made after Attorney General Daniel Cameron's office presented its findings to the grand jury earlier this week. The attorney general and his team have been investigating the shooting since May.
Sam Aguiar, who is also representing Taylor's estate, slammed the decision Thursday.
"The attorney general failed to even acknowledge or discuss black letter law stating that it is unlawful to shoot, let alone kill, an unarmed innocent third party who did not use deadly force," Aguiar told Inside Edition Digital. "His decision appears to be politically motivated rather than an application of the true law and facts. We are angry, upset, confused, frustrated and beyond disappointed. This was yet another terrible event that sends a message that police killings of Black Americans will not result in any accountability whatsoever."
Benjamin Crump, who is also representing Taylor’s estate, appeared on the "Today Show" Thursday morning to express his outrage with the decision. He said that Taylor’s family is “outraged, they were insulted and they were mostly offended.” He called the grand jury decision “a sham proceeding that did not give Breonna Taylor a voice.”
“We seem to have two justice systems in America; one for Black America and one for white America,” he said.
Many others spoke publicly on the decision to not indict any of the officers in Taylor's death. Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris took to Twitter Thursday to publicly state “Keep speaking Breonna Taylor’s name.”
Harris has been vocal about Taylor’s case since it became a national story in the spring.
Last week, Taylor’s estate was awarded $12 million by the city in damages. The mayor also announced sweeping police reform.
In documentation previously obtained by the Louisville Courier-Journal, police were authorized to carry out a “no-knock” warrant on Taylor’s Louisville home on March 13 as part of a narcotics investigation of a person who lived in a home 10 miles away. Neither Taylor nor her boyfriend, Walker, were the investigation's target. Police had suspected, though, that Taylor’s home was used to receive drugs.
Authorities said they identified themselves, despite the “no-knock” warrant. Police said the officers were “immediately” met by gunfire when they entered Taylor and Walker's home, at which point they returned fire.
Walker called 911 during the ordeal and he was informed he'd shot an officer. He was initially charged with attempted murder, but his charges were later dropped after he said he shot in self-defense thinking he and Taylor were victims of a home invasion.
In the wake of Taylor's death, the city has banned "no-knock" warrants.
In June, Officer Brett Hankison was fired from the Louisville Metro Police Department. He is currently contesting his termination with legal council. Officer Myles Cosgrove and John Mattingly have been reassigned.
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