FBI Will Probe Case of Woman Killed by Cops While Sleeping

Breonna Taylor's March death has recently made national headlines
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted May 22, 2020 12:20 AM CDT
FBI Will Probe Case of Woman Killed by Cops While Sleeping
In this March 19, 2020 photo, Bianca Austin composes herself before making remarks during a vigil for her niece, Breonna Taylor, outside the Judicial Center in downtown Louisville, Ky.   (Sam Upshaw/Courier Journal via AP)

The fatal shooting of a black EMT as she slept in her Louisville, Ky., home will be investigated by the FBI. The bureau announced Thursday that it has opened a probe into Breonna Taylor's death, the New York Times reports. The 26-year-old was killed in March during a narcotics raid on her address, despite the fact that the suspect did not live there. Also Thursday, the city's mayor said the police chief will retire at the end of June and that any future "no knock" search warrants will require approval from both the police chief and a judge. "The FBI will collect all available facts and evidence and will ensure that the investigation is conducted in a fair, thorough and impartial manner," the bureau's Louisville field office says in a statement.

Meanwhile, the attorney for Taylor's boyfriend Kenneth Walker, who police say fired at them when they forced their way inside, will file to dismiss the attempted murder charge levied against Walker, WAVE-3 reports. "The picture presented to the grand jury completely mischaracterizes the events that took place at Ms. Taylor’s apartment that resulted in Ms. Taylor’s death," his lawyer says in a filing. "In fact, they completely omit the existence of Ms. Taylor at all. The grand jury was not told that the police shot and killed Ms. Taylor while trying to enter her apartment, nor was the grand jury told that Mr. Walker never stated that he knew that he fired a shot at police officers." The attorney says Walker had no idea who had entered the home. (More Breonna Taylor stories.)

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